Late in October, Public Citizen, Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, the Truck Safety Coalition, and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters reached an agreement with the FMCSA. Under the agreement, the FMCSA will reconsider, and potentially change, its oft-challenged hours-of-service rule for commercial drivers.
Under the terms of the agreement:
- FMCSA will review and reconsider the 2008 hours-of-service regulation;
- FMCSA will submit a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for approval within nine months of the date of settlement (October 26, 2009);
- Within 30 days of the publication of the NPRM in the Federal Register, the parties will file motions to govern further proceedings; and
- FMCSA will publish a final rule within 21 months of the date of settlement.
Until then, the current HOS rules are in effect.
The driver HOS rule has been the center of debate among FMCSA and industry and advocacy groups since 2003, when the agency issued the first revision in the regulation in more than 60 years.
The HOS revisions extended allowable driving time to 11 hours from 10 hours and permitted drivers to reset their weekly maximum work hours after taking a 34-hour break. The rule also cut one hour from the total allowable work day.
Federal courts overturned the rule twice, citing driver health and safety and improper procedures by FMCSA. The agreement to revise the rule ends a third legal challenge by labor and advocacy groups, which have succeeded twice in getting federal courts to reject the new regulation.
The American Trucking Associations responded to the announcement of a potential HOS rules change in defense of the current rules. The group says the HOS rules are working, and the proof is in the industry's safety performance since they took effect in 2004. Figures from the U.S. DOT demonstrate that the trucking industry is now the safest it has been since the DOT began keeping crash statistics in 1975. The number of truck-involved fatalities on our highways has decreased by 19 percent since the new HOS rules took effect. The number of injuries has decreased by 13 percent since 2004. "The crash rate, injury rate and fatality rate are all at historic lows. The science is on the side of the current hours-of-service rules," said Clayton Boyce, ATA Vice-President of Public Affairs.
Putting the rule back under review, ATA President Bill Graves said, creates "uncertainty" for trucking companies and "is wholly unwarranted, given the consistent and significant highway safety improvements made by the trucking industry under the current rules. The current rule is working as USDOT intended," Graves said. "It is saving lives."
The safety improvements came at a time when the number of registered large trucks operating on highways increased by hundreds of thousands and the number of miles driven by large trucks increased by more than two billion miles.
An FMCSA committee met publicly in early December, and will have three listening sessions January 18-29 on HOS. Also, the FMCSA will soon issue a Federal Register notice soliciting data and research information the agency may consider in drafting a notice of proposed rulemaking.
"The FMCSA is committed to developing an hours-of-service rule that raises the safety bar for drivers of property-carrying commercial vehicles," said FMCSA's new administrator, Anne Ferro. "The MCSAC public meeting is one of several steps our agency will take to encourage a robust exchange of ideas and research on this critical safety issue."
Said one official who asked not to be identified, "If it's an honest rulemaking with an honest assessment of the experience of the motor carrier industry, then it's not likely that the rule will change. There's one side of me that says maybe the rule will change, but there's another side of me that says, ‘On what basis would the rule change?' It can't be politics. What new data and information is there on which to base a rule change? That's an obvious and very important question."
Driving Ambition is a premier CDL truck driver staffing company serving Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, and Tennessee. Since 2001, we have specialized in matching safe, experienced CDL drivers for our customers and great job opportunities for our professional truck drivers.
Our commitment to safety and building solid working relationships with both customers and CDL drivers has allowed us to earn an unparalleled reputation with our Proven Drivers and Exceptional Service.
Earlier this month, the American Trucking Association (ATA) conducted a webinar on CSA 2010. I have documented the notes from that webinar. Please forgive the lengthiness of this section - it's of critical importance.
As I hope you are aware by now, FMCSA's new program, CSA 2010, plans to completely replace the existing model (SafeStat) for commercial vehicle enforcement and compliance by the end of 2010. CSA 2010's ultimate goal is to reduce large truck and bus fatalities by contacting more carriers and drivers, using improved data to better identify high risk carriers and drivers, and applying a wider range of interventions to correct high risk behaviors.
CSA 2010's model consists of three major components:
1. Safety Measurement System (SMS) - Focuses on motor carriers' & drivers' compliance problems (CSMS & DSMS)
2. Intervention Process - Uses a mix of FMCSA interventions rather than just compliance review (CR)
3. Safety Fitness Determination (SFD) - SFD tied in the future to current safety performance; not limited to acute/critical violations from a CR. Proposed rule on New Safety Fitness Determination (i.e. safety rating) in early 2010
How Carrier Scores Will be Determined
The new Safety Measurement System (SMS) will:
- Use crash records & ALL roadside inspection safety-based violations in measuring motor carrier/driver safety performance (not just out-of service violations as under SafeStat)
- Calculate safety performance based on 7 Behavior Analysis & Safety Improvement Categories (BASICs)
- Weigh all violations from inspections for time and severity (violations diminish over time; e.g. most recent 6 months weighted heavier)
- Compare the data against motor carriers that are about the same size with the same number of inspections
7 BASICs
The 7 BASICs focus on behaviors linked to potential crash risk. Each BASIC is time & severity weighted to determine performance then ranked to trigger intervention process. After the future rulemaking, the BASICs will feed the Safety Fitness Determination (SFD).
1. Unsafe Driving (392 & 397): Dangerous or careless operation
a. Data that will feed the Unsafe Driving BASIC includes traffic violations (warnings & citations) and convictions such as speeding, reckless driving, improper lane change, inattention, and unsafe driving behavio
2. Fatigued Driving (392 & 395): Violations of HOS rules
a. Data that will feed the Fatigued Driving BASIC includes Hours-of-service violations discovered during roadside inspections, off-site investigations, on-site investigations, or post-crash inspections
3. Driver Fitness (383 & 391): Unfit due to lack of training, experience or medical qualification
a. Data that will feed the Driver Fitness BASIC includes inspection violations for failure to have valid and appropriate CDL or medical or training documentation
4. Controlled Substances/Alcohol (382 & 392): Impaired due to alcohol or drugs
a. Data that will feed the Controlled Substances/Alcohol BASIC includes roadside violations of controlled substances or alcohol
5. Vehicle Maintenance (393 & 396): Improper or inadequate maintenance
a. Data that feeds the Vehicle Maintenance BASIC includes roadside violations for brakes, lights, and other mechanical defects
6. Cargo-Related (392, 393, 397 & HazMat): Shifting loads or dropped cargo & unsafe handling of hazardous materials
a. Data that will feed the Cargo-Related BASIC includes roadside inspection violations pertaining to load securement, cargo retention, and HazMat handling
7. Crash Indicator: High frequency & severity of crash involvement
a. Data that will feed the Crash Indicator BASIC includes law enforcement crash reports and those discovered during on-site investigations
Intervention Process
The mix of FMCSA interventions include early contact in the form of a warning letter and targeted roadside inspections. Enforcement steps up from there with investigations, which include off-site investigations, as well as on-site focused investigations and on-site comprehensive investigations. Finally, to make sure compliance is achieved and maintained, FMCSA implemented Follow-on interventions, or corrective actions. These include:
- Cooperative Safety Plan (CSP) - implemented by the carrier and voluntary. The carrier and FMCSA work together to create a plan to address the underlying problems that cause the motor carrier's substandard compliance.
- Notice of Violation (NOV) - a formal notice of safety deficiencies that require a response. No fine is assessed. FMCSA will use this measure when violations can be immediately corrected and the motor carrier is in full cooperation to fix the problem.
- Notice of Claim (NOC) - this measure involves the assessment of a fine.
FMCSA enforcement personnel can start the enforcement process anywhere along that ladder of enforcement. It does not necessarily start with a letter and progress through the steps.
The higher the risk posed by the motor carriers' lack of compliance, the more likely they are to face stiff enforcement in lieu of a warning letter.
How to Prepare
CSA 2010 will be rolled out across the country between July and December 2010. Here's how carriers can prepare now:
- Understanding the CSA 2010 Methodology
- ALL violations count
- Understand the BASICs
- Know the high severity weight violations
- Know that violations diminish over time
- Set up plans/policies to respond to potential interventions
- Obtain & Review Motor Carrier Safety Profile
- Use COMPASS to obtain and review your safety data at https://portal.fmcsa.dot.gov/
- o Focus now on potential problem areas
- o Check COMPASS for unreported inspections and incorrectly assigned inspections
- o Remember drivers, shippers, insurance firms, and attorneys can see your files, too
- Clean up CSA 2010 Data Files
- Update Your Census Data Regularly via the MCS-150
- Update the MCS-150 regularly (e.g. quarterly)
- Currently, the number of power units is being used as the normalizing factor; make sure it's updated
- Vehicles Miles Traveled (VMT) may become important; keep it updated
- Compare Past Violations (last 24 months) to High Severity Weighted Violations
- Know Why Your Trucks Are Getting Inspected
- Know what prompts inspections of your trucks (traffic violations, observable defects, inspection selection score)
- Correct problem areas:
- If speeding (speed governors, HR actions, etc.)
- If observable defects, bad lights, tires, etc. (emphasize pre-trip inspections, maintenance program, etc.)
- Reduce the number of inspections
- Raise Driver's Awareness of Importance of Clean Inspections
- Roadside inspections with or without violations will count in CSA 2010; clean inspections are critical
- Have drivers demand an inspection report if there are no violations (i.e., clean inspections)
- Consider establishing a driver bonus program for clean inspection reports
- Review Driver Safety History When Hiring: Pre-employment Screening Program
- Law enforcement has access to driver's history through the Driver Information Resource
- Same information will soon be available for motor carrier review (planned Jan 2010)
- Will be called Pre-employment Screening Program
- Valuable resource: pre-hire
- Subscription & transaction fees; budget for it
- Manage Driver Behavior & Safety Practices
- Educate drivers & management personnel
- Consider allocating more resources to review safety profiles, check driver records and respond to FMCSA interventions
- Make and keep crash accountability determinations
- Recognize that exceeding FMCSA thresholds in Unsafe Driving or Fatigued Driving will lead to intervention
Between now and July 2010, more and more information will continue to be made available. Stay tuned!
Driving Ambition is a premier CDL truck driver staffing company serving Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, and Tennessee. Since 2001, we have specialized in matching safe, experienced CDL drivers for our customers and great job opportunities for our professional truck drivers.
Our commitment to safety and building solid working relationships with both customers and CDL drivers has allowed us to earn an unparalleled reputation with our Proven Drivers and Exceptional Service.
So far this fall, FMCSA has briefed the following three groups of legislative staff on the status of the CSA 2010 Operational Model Test and plans for implementation.
- U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations, Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Subcommittee
- U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation
- U.S. House of Representatives, Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure
Click here to view the Congressional Briefing PowerPoint from the FMCSA website on CSA 2010.
CSA 2010 updates appear every Wednesday in the FMCSA News Summary at http://csa2010.fmcsa.dot.gov/
Do you have a written, explicit policy against distracted driving for your CDL drivers?
If the answer is no, the "Cell Phone and Texting Policy Kit" is just for you.
The National Safety Council has put together a useful one-stop resource for employers who want to get on the right side of this problem, protect their drivers, and reduce their own liability. As they put it, "Allowing employees to conduct either hands-free or handheld business on cell phones while driving represents acceptance of a four times increase in crash risk. We want to help employers reduce this risk."
So, for those employers who don't want to reinvent the wheel, please visit NSC's Employer Policy page where you can find a great, downloadable "Cell Phone and Texting Policy Kit."
Driving Ambition is a premier CDL truck driver staffing company serving Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, and Tennessee. Since 2001, we have specialized in matching safe, experienced CDL drivers for our customers and great job opportunities for our professional truck drivers.
Our commitment to safety and building solid working relationships with both customers and CDL drivers has allowed us to earn an unparalleled reputation with our Proven Drivers and Exceptional Service.
Following the FMCSA's first national drug and alcohol strike force, more than 84 bus and trucking companies face enforcement action while 77 commercial bus and truck drivers were taken off the road.
The strike force, which lasted from Sept. 8 through Sept. 18, involved FMCSA safety investigators, who examined the drug and alcohol safety records of commercial drivers employed by bus companies, hazmat transporters and general freight long-haul trucking companies.
The goals of the strike force were to identify motor carriers in violation of federal drug and alcohol testing requirements and to remove from the road commercial truck and bus drivers who jump from carrier to carrier to try and evade federal drug and alcohol testing and reporting requirements.
The 77 commercial drivers have been put out of service, and will likely face a monetary fine, in addition to the possibility of having their commercial licenses revoked. In addition, the 84 commercial carriers face pending enforcement action for violations such as using a driver that has tested positive for illegal drugs and for not instituting a drug and alcohol testing program.
"Safety is the number one priority for the Department of Transportation," says U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. "Violators of our drug and alcohol policies have no business driving a commercial vehicle."