11OctUPDATED – The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has published an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) to potentially redo the Safety Fitness Determination (SFD) process, which is part of its comprehensive Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA) truck safety program. The SFD process can result in a declaration that a motor
By: Steve Vaughn, senior vice president of field operations, PrePass Safety Alliance You may recall the 2004 movie “Friday Night Lights” or the 2006-2011 TV series of the same name. According to its producers, “Friday Night Lights” depicted the “intense and sometimes extreme culture of high school football in small
2OctTwo notices recently published in the Federal Register may provide clues to where the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) is heading on important trucking regulations: driver detention and truck maintenance. These notices, known formally as Information Collection Requests (ICR) are required any time a federal agency looks to access
27SepBy: Steve Vaughn, senior vice president of field operations, PrePass Safety Alliance “It’s all about control.” That’s what I hear from frustrated fleet managers and their professional drivers – the government is trying to control our every action. Take the speed limiter proposal, they say. “It’s the government bureaucrats, most
21SepImagine driving down a city street. The traffic light ahead senses the speed of your approach and stays green for your benefit. Then imagine that the same traffic light sends you a message to keep your speed at 34 mph and you will have green lights at every intersection. The
14SepThe Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) recently gave notice that it will consider petitions to undo the federal preemption of truck driver meal and rest break rules in California and Washington State. The agency determined in 2018 and 2020 that those state-level rules were more stringent than the federal
12SepThere is a little-known U.S. Transportation Department agency that is responsible for developing and enforcing regulations for the safe transportation of energy and other hazardous materials, including by truck. Recently, it took another step to help improve compliance with federal hazmat regulations. In March 2022, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials
6Sep“Nuclear verdicts.” “Reptile courtroom tactics.” Billboard attorneys are assaulting the trucking industry through litigation, with multi-million-dollar awards becoming more and more common. The American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI) documents and studies the impact of litigation on trucking, tracking both large and small but numerous verdicts. Now the U.S. Chamber of
28AugA multiyear study commissioned by 10 major trucking companies concludes that urinalysis, the drug-testing method sanctioned by the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) for truck drivers, fails to identify about 90% of actual drug use. The study by the University of Central Arkansas compared more than 936,000 truck driver pre-employment
23Aug$17.4 billion. That is the estimated amount of toll revenue generated in the U.S. every year. The country’s first toll road opened in 1792. Today, 38 states have toll roads, bridges, and tunnels, as well as express lanes, or other toll facilities. Of all tolls collected annually, commercial trucks pay
22AugPotential dangers during inspections of compressed or liquid natural gas or hydrogen bulk packages contained within a truck trailer or cargo tank have sparked warnings from several commercial vehicle safety organizations. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), and the Commercial Vehicle
22AugPotential dangers during inspections of compressed or liquid natural gas or hydrogen bulk packages contained within a truck trailer or cargo tank have sparked warnings from several commercial vehicle safety organizations. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), and the Commercial Vehicle
