Tag: #truckdriversafety

FMCSA final rule scales back scope of regulatory relief during emergencies

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Washington — Temporary hours-of-service exemptions and other regulatory relief for truckers during regional emergency declarations will be limited under a recently published Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration final rule.

Published Oct. 13 and set to go into effect Dec. 12, the rule:

  • Modifies the definition of “emergency” to clarify that emergency regulatory relief doesn’t apply to economic conditions caused by market forces, including material/supply shortages, labor strikes or driver shortages.
  • Removes the definition of “emergency relief” and amends the definition of “direct assistance” to adopt the vital components of the former definition of “emergency relief.”
  • Exempts drivers and motor carriers for 14 days – down from 30 – during regional emergency declarations issued by a governor, governor’s representative or FMCSA, and applies exemptions only from certain HOS regulations.

Presidential emergency declarations still will have 30-day exemptions and apply to current covered regulations, including those applicable to driver qualification requirements and vehicle inspections.

FMCSA declared and extended emergency relief to truckers during the COVID-19 pandemic.

In December, the agency solicited comments on a notice of proposed rulemaking.

“By limiting the scope,” FMCSA says, “today’s rule clarifies that the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations not relevant to most emergency situations remain in effect while retaining the agency’s flexibility to tailor emergency regulatory relief to the specific circumstances of an emergency.”

McCraren Compliance can help you understand and comply with FMCSA, USDOT and ADOT and ensure your drivers and your vehicles operate safely and efficiently.

Call us Today at 888-758-4757 or email us at info@mccrarencompliance.com to schedule your free FMCSA Compliance Assessment.

Original article published by Safety+Health an NSC publication

California governor vetoes bill banning driverless trucks

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sh.truckLights.web.jpg
Photo: gorodenkoff/iStockphoto

Sacramento, CA — California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) has vetoed legislation that would have banned autonomous trucks weighing 10,000-plus pounds from operating on the state’s roadways without a person on board.

A.B. 316 also would have prevented the California Highway Patrol and Department of Motor Vehicles from considering permits for AVs until 2029.

Newsom writes in a Sept. 22 veto message that the proposed bill is “unnecessary for the regulation and oversight of heavy-duty autonomous vehicle technology in California, as existing law provides sufficient authority to create the appropriate regulatory framework.”

The governor cites 2012 legislation that permits California’s DMV to work with the state highway patrol, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and “others with relevant expertise” to determine regulations related to autonomous trucks.

Lawmakers in January introduced A.B. 316 in the California Assembly. The bipartisan legislation was unanimously approved by the Senate Transportation Committee on July 12 and on Sept. 11 passed in the California Senate and Assembly.

The Autonomous Vehicle Industry Association backs the governor’s decision to veto the bill. “As a result, California’s safety experts can continue to evaluate autonomous vehicle technology and consider appropriate regulatory action,” AVIA Executive Director Jeff Farrah said in a press release.

The International Brotherhood of Teamsters participated in a Sept. 19 rally calling on Newsom to sign A.B. 316 into law. In a Sept. 23 post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Teamsters General President Sean O’Brien wrote that Newsom, who vetoed the bill on a Friday evening, “doesn’t have the guts to face working people. He’d rather give away our jobs in the dead of night.”

O’Brien added that vetoing the bill is “giving a green light to put these dangerous rigs on the road.”

McCraren Compliance can help you understand and comply with FMCSA, USDOT and ADOT and ensure your drivers and your vehicles operate safely and efficiently.

Call us Today at 888-758-4757 or email us at info@mccrarencompliance.com to schedule your free FMCSA Compliance Assessment.

Original article published by Safety+Health an NSC publication

Safe parking one focus of $80 million in FMCSA grants

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Trucks line up at a Port of Los Angeles gate. (photo courtesy of the Port of Los Angeles)

Washington — Improving truckers’ access to safe parking is one of the initiatives being funded by more than $80 million in high priority grants from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.

The grant program provides funding for activities and projects aimed at strengthening trucking safety by way of the Motor Carrier Safety Assistance Program, as well as innovative technology, research and other projects. State and local governments, Native American tribes, political jurisdictions, nonprofit organizations, and institutions of higher education are among the groups eligible for funding.

The grant initiatives include a 65% increase in funding from last year for truck parking projects, as well as providing dynamic message signage – intended to help truck drivers locate open parking spaces in rest areas – along highways in Delaware, Indiana and Kentucky.

Other projects awarded grants include:

  • Research to support automated, location-based driver alerts via electronic logging devices that inform drivers of upcoming work zones
  • Enhancement of electronic screening technologies to detect vehicle violations, including automated license plate readers, U.S. Department of Transportation number readers, tire monitoring system, and hazardous material placard readers

“We depend on truck drivers every day, and we have a national responsibility to support their safety and job quality,” Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said in a press release. “Today, we are proud to deliver new funding that will improve safety on our nation’s roads.”

McCraren Compliance can help you understand and comply with FMCSA, USDOT and ADOT and ensure your drivers and your vehicles operate safely and efficiently.

Call us Today at 888-758-4757 or email us at info@mccrarencompliance.com to schedule your free FMCSA Compliance Assessment.

Original article published by Safety+Health an NSC publication

Teamsters call for strong federal oversight of driverless trucks

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Washington — Federal regulation of autonomous trucks must “prioritize both workers and safety,” the International Brotherhood of Teamsters says.
sh.truckLights.web.jpg

Photo: gorodenkoff/iStockphoto

In a recently released framework document, the Teamsters list suggestions Congress and federal regulators should consider when forming federal policy on autonomous trucks. Among them: Include a requirement for human operators and don’t issue rules that override any on the state level that have “greater protections.”

The labor union provides five principles to guide policy: regulating the vehicle, regulating the operator, regulating operations, interaction with other laws and workforce impacts.

Mandating that autonomous trucks be operated by humans subject to DOT requirements governing commercial driver’s licenses and hours-of-service regulations is among the Teamsters’ top objectives. The union also wants to uphold state regulations that might require more human operators and monitors or greater licensing standards and restrictions on autonomous vehicle use than a federal policy might stipulate.

Other proposed provisions:

  • Authorize the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to revoke operating authority for the use of AVs by any operator at its discretion because of safety issues.
  • Require motor carriers that want to deploy AVs to report the location and function of vehicles in use.
  • Ensure Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards – not a waiver – regulate the design, construction and performance of highly automated vehicles and automated driving systems.
  • Require any recipient of federal funding, federal transit funding or holder of FMCSA operating authority to publicly disclose planned AV use and its expected workforce impacts.

“Strong federal AV policies must prioritize both workers and safety,” Teamsters General President Sean O’Brien said in a press release. “Any legislation that puts workers and the general public at risk will be met with aggressive opposition by the Teamsters and our allies.”

A developing AV law in California holds the Teamsters’ backing. On Sept. 11, the California Senate and Assembly passed A.B. 316, which would prohibit autonomous trucks weighing more than 10,000 pounds from operating on state roadways without human drivers.

The legislation also would keep the California Highway Patrol and Department of Motor Vehicles from considering permits for AVs until 2029.

O’Brien, in a separate release, affirmed the Teamsters’ backing of the bill while calling on California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) to sign it. Neglecting to do so would put “the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of truck drivers at risk, while jeopardizing public safety.”

McCraren Compliance can help you understand and comply with FMCSA, USDOT and ADOT and ensure your drivers and your vehicles operate safely and efficiently.

Call us Today at 888-758-4757 or email us at info@mccrarencompliance.com to schedule your free FMCSA Compliance Assessment.

Original article published by Safety+Health an NSC publication

FMCSA to study impact of detention time on trucker safety

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Trucks line up at a Port of Los Angeles gate. (photo courtesy of the Port of Los Angeles)

Washington — The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration wants to study the safety impact of the time that truck drivers spend waiting for cargo to be loaded and unloaded.

That lag, often in excess of two hours, is known as “detention time.” In an Information Collection Request published Aug. 24, FMCSA states that “drivers who experience less detention time may be more likely to drive safely to reach their destinations within the [federal hours-of-service] limits and less likely to operate beyond HOS limits and improperly log their driving and duty time to make deliveries on time.”

The agency intends to collect data on driver detention time from about 80 motor carriers and 2,500 drivers – “representative of the major segments” of the trucking industry. FMCSA will then analyze that data to determine the frequency and severity of detention time and assess the “utility of existing intelligent transportation systems solutions” to measure detention time. A 2014 FMCSA study of detention time had “several limitations,” the notice states, including:

  • A small sample of mostly large carriers
  • A rudimentary estimation of detention time
  • An inability to identify time spent loading/unloading
  • Data that didn’t cover an entire 12-month period

“FMCSA needs additional data from a broader sample of carriers to understand the safety and operational impact of detention time, to better understand why detention time occurs, and to identify potential mitigation strategies the commercial motor vehicle industry may use to reduce detention time while improving operational efficiencies and safety,” the notice states.

Comments are due Oct. 23.

McCraren Compliance can help you understand and comply with FMCSA, USDOT and ADOT and ensure your drivers and your vehicles operate safely and efficiently.

Call us Today at 888-758-4757 or email us at info@mccrarencompliance.com to schedule your free FMCSA Compliance Assessment.

Original article published by Safety+Health an NSC publication

House committee advances bill that includes a block on speed limiters

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orange-semi
Photo: Missouri Department of Transportation Flickr

Washington — The House Appropriations Committee has approved legislation that would prohibit funding for a Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration proposal to require the installation of speed-limiting devices on heavy trucks.

Approved during a July 18 committee markup, the appropriations bill proposes a budget of $891.3 million for FMCSA in fiscal year 2024, which begins Oct. 1. However, the legislation includes a provision that zero funding may be used “to promulgate any rule or regulation” mandating the installation of speed limiters on trucks, buses and multipurpose passenger vehicles weighing more than 26,000 pounds.

In May 2022, FMCSA introduced a proposed rule to that end, expanding on a 2016 joint proposal from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and FMCSA. The latter is the sole agency listed on the proposed rule, which doesn’t suggest a top speed. The 2016 proposal specified capping speeds at 60, 65 or 68 mph.

FMCSA has received nearly 16,000 comments on its updated proposal, which includes multiple stakeholder prompts, including:

  • What percentage of the commercial motor vehicle fleet uses speed-limiting devices?
  • If in use, at what maximum speed are the devices generally set?
  • What training or skill sets are needed for motor carriers’ maintenance personnel to adjust or program electronic engine control units to set speed limits?

The bill now advances to the House floor.

McCraren Compliance can help you understand and comply with FMCSA, USDOT and ADOT and ensure your drivers and your vehicles operate safely and efficiently.

Call us Today at 888-758-4757 or email us at info@mccrarencompliance.com to schedule your free FMCSA Compliance Assessment.

Original article published by Safety+Health an NSC publication

House committee advances truck parking act and other bills

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Original article published by Safety+Health

Photo: Missouri Department of Transportation

Washington — The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee approved the Truck Parking Safety Improvement Act, along with 16 other bills, during a May 23 markup.

Introduced by Rep. Mike Bost (R-IL), the act (H.R. 2367) would empower the transportation secretary to issue grants for projects that create truck parking. It also would allow for expanded parking at current truck parking areas and prohibit charging drivers for any parking spaces created under the act.

“I grew up in a family trucking business,” Bost said in a committee press release. “I understand how difficult, and oftentimes dangerous, it can be when America’s truckers are forced to park in an unsafe location. By expanding access to parking options for truckers, we are making our roads safer for all commuters and ensuring goods and supplies are shipped to market in the most efficient way possible. This is a matter of public safety, and I’m proud to have led on this important legislation.”

Among the other bills approved:

  • The Licensing Individual Commercial Exam-takers Now Safely and Efficiently (LICENSE) Act of 2023 (H.R. 3013), which would direct the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to revise federal regulations on state or third-party administration of commercial driver’s license knowledge tests. In addition, states or third parties would be allowed to administer driving tests regardless of which state an applicant lives in or where they received driver training.
  • The Motor Carrier Safety Selection Standard Act (H.R. 915), which would direct FMCSA “to develop a new safety fitness determination process to change the way a motor carrier is rated.”
  • H.R. 3372, which would establish voluntary 10-year pilot programs for states to increase truck weights on federal interstates to 91,000 pounds on six axles.

The committee postponed its consideration of the Developing Responsible Individuals for a Vibrant Economy (DRIVE) Safe Integrity Act (H.R. 3408) – a bill concerning a pilot program for 18- to 20-year-old interstate truck and bus drivers. The status of the bill is undetermined for future markups.

All 17 of the bills passed by the committee now go before the full House.

McCraren Compliance can help you understand and comply with FMCSA, USDOT and ADOT and ensure your drivers and your vehicles operate safely and efficiently.

Call us Today at 888-758-4757 or email us at info@mccrarencompliance.com to schedule your free FMCSA Compliance Assessment.

NIOSH video tells truckers about safe transfer of process fluids

Posted on by McCraren Compliance
Original article published by Safety+Health
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Photo: NIOSH

Washington — A new video emphasizes safe work practices for truck drivers transferring process fluids such as oil and gas from wells to other locations.

Developed by NIOSH, the video notes that from 2016 to 2020, at least 12 workers died while transferring fluids at well sites. The deaths resulted from cardiac events, combustion-related explosions, struck-by vehicle incidents, exposure to hydrogen sulfide and heatstroke.

During fluid transfers, flammable atmospheres present a hazard to workers, the agency warns. In addition, when fluid tanks are under pressure, hydrocarbon gases and vapors can escape, creating potentially toxic and oxygen-deficient surroundings that may cause damage to a worker’s eyes, lungs, central nervous system and heart.

In the 11-minute video, NIOSH encourages employers to select and implement effective controls from the Hierarchy of Controls. Engineering controls include safely venting or containing process fluid vapors by using a vapor recovery unit, as well as using conducting hoses and closed connections for fluid transfers. Administrative controls include worker training and workplace policies. Employers also should train workers on the proper use of personal, multiuse gas monitors and how to confirm the devices are functioning properly and placed within the worker’s breathing zone.

“Oil and process fluids can be transferred and transported safely and with minimal risks,” the video says. “But to do so, employers and workers must understand the hazards, know the risks, and be able to apply the appropriate controls under the appropriate circumstances to control the hazards and mitigate the risks involved. Doing so each time will save lives.”

McCraren Compliance can help you understand and comply with FMCSA, USDOT and ADOT and ensure your drivers and your vehicles operate safely and efficiently.

Call us Today at 888-758-4757 or email us at info@mccrarencompliance.com to schedule your free FMCSA Compliance Assessment.

Bill would halt FMCSA’s movement on speed limiters

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Original article published by Safety+Health

Photo: Missouri Department of Transportation Flickr

Washington — Legislation recently introduced in the House would prohibit the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration from requiring speed-limiting devices on large trucks and buses.

Sponsored by Rep. Josh Brecheen (R-OK), the Deregulating Restrictions on Interstate Vehicles and Eighteen-Wheelers, or DRIVE, Act (H.R. 3039) covers trucks, buses and multipurpose passenger vehicles weighing more than 26,000 pounds.

Brecheen is a fourth-generation rancher and former trucking company operator. “I know from experience driving a semi while hauling equipment, and years spent hauling livestock, that the flow of traffic set by state law is critical for safety instead of an arbitrary one-size-fits-all speed limit imposed by some bureaucrat sitting at his desk in Washington, D.C.,” he said in a press release.

In May 2022, FMCSA published an advance notice of supplemental proposed rulemaking that expands on a 2016 joint proposal from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and FMCSA that would require speed limiters. FMCSA is the lone agency listed on the proposal, which doesn’t specify a top speed. The 2016 proposal suggested capping speeds at 60, 65 or 68 mph.

The Department of Transportation’s Fall 2022 regulatory agenda lists June as a target date for publication of a second proposed rule.

Multiple industry groups back Breechen’s bill, including the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association, the U.S. Cattlemen’s Association, and the Towing and Recovery Association of America. The American Trucking Associations, meanwhile, supports FMCSA’s proposal and recommends a recurring, five-year review of “speed-governing regulations” to ensure they remain consistent with current technology.

“These efforts to prohibit the development of safety policies are misguided,” Bill Sullivan, executive vice president of advocacy at ATA, said in a press release. “They will lead to more serious crashes – and this bill will never become law, even if it passes the House.”

McCraren Compliance can help you understand and comply with FMCSA, USDOT and ADOT and ensure your drivers and your vehicles operate safely and efficiently.

Call us Today at 888-758-4757 or email us at info@mccrarencompliance.com to schedule your free FMCSA Compliance Assessment.

FMCSA wants to expand Crash Preventability Determination Program

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Original article published by Safety+Health

Washington — The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is seeking comment on potentially expanding a program intended to determine to what extent crashes involving commercial trucks and buses are preventable.

Adjusting the Crash Preventability Determination Program would help FMCSA “review even more crashes each year,” the agency says in a notice published in the April 13 Federal Register. “The use of more preventability information in assessing motor carriers will provide an improved indication of a motor carrier’s crash risk.”

FMCSA established the program in May 2020. The agency reviews crashes classified under 16 types while modifying information in its Safety Measurement System to delineate non-preventable crashes.

The proposal would add four new crash types:

  • Commercial motor vehicles struck on the side by a driver operating in the same direction
  • CMVs struck because another driver was entering the roadway from a private driveway or parking lot
  • CMVs struck because another driver lost control of their vehicle
  • Any other type of crash involving a CMV in which video demonstrates the sequence of events

Additionally, FMCSA wants to modify 11 existing crash types “to broaden” them and “allow more crashes to be eligible.” The proposed changes would double the program’s size, FMCSA says.

Between May 1, 2020, and Dec. 30, FMCSA received more than 39,000 requests for data review, the notice states. About 72.5% of the requests fell under an existing category, with approximately 96% of crashes classified as “not preventable.”

Comments on the proposal are due June 12.

McCraren Compliance can help you understand and comply with FMCSA, USDOT and ADOT and ensure your drivers and your vehicles operate safely and efficiently.

Call us Today at 888-758-4757 or email us at info@mccrarencompliance.com to schedule your free FMCSA Compliance Assessment.