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federal motor carrier safety administration

FMCSA Rushes Young Driver Pilot Initiative to Help Ease Shortage

January 15, 2022 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is currently urging the White House to offer emergency, expedited approval of the driver apprenticeship program that came as part of 2021’s $1 trillion infrastructure bill.

President Biden’s DRIVE-Safe Act–included in his Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act–would implement an initiative allowing drivers between 18- and 21-years of age to be able to operate commercial vehicles in interstate commerce–a change from the previous regulation which only allowed drivers in that age range to work within intrastate operations. The push to expedite this approval process is a scrambling effort by federal regulators to find methods of easing the current, long-lasting truck driver shortage.

FMCSA has asked the White House Office of Management and Budget to launch the pilot by this week, a pilot that would allow drivers with intrastate commercial driver licenses to work within these new parameters and that would require trucking companies to properly monitor their drivers who are part of the program.

Soon, around 4,500 carriers will likely begin enrolling more than 40,000 into the pilot program, FMCSA predicts, as the industry voices their belief that this initiative will help bring about the highly-needed number of new drivers entering the industry and alleviate the ongoing shortage.

Is rushing this program into fruition the safest course of action? Most likely not, says Levinson and Stefani’s Ken Levinson.

“The labor market is very difficult right now for the industry, and for trucking companies in particular,” he explained. “But despite the pressure of the shortage, carriers just cannot hire unsafe or unqualified drivers. It’s just not the way to go–it’s too dangerous, and the risks are too high.”

Hopefully, then, these drivers will indeed undergo rigorous training and be heavily monitored while participating in the program. According to the pilot’s outline, young drivers will be able to operate within interstate commerce under the supervision of an experienced driver during their probationary period–the “experienced driver” must have had a commercial driver license and have been employed for at least the last two years with at least five years of experience, and be over the age of 26.

Out of two probationary periods, these drivers must first: complete 120 hours of on-duty time with 80 of those operating a CMV, with employer-confirmed efficiency in speed and space management, lane control, mirror scanning, evening driving, rural driving, interstate and city driving, safety awareness, hours-of-service compliance, and proper left and right turns. During the second probationary period, drivers must: complete 280 hours of on-duty time with 160 of those operating a CMV, with employer-confirmed efficiency in pre-trip inspections, coupling and uncoupling procedures, trip planning and map reading, load weighing and distribution, backing and maneuvering within small spaces, and fueling procedures.

Following these probationary periods, the young drivers can then begin driving commercial motor vehicles in interstate commerce alongside an experienced driver. The pilot program also mandates data collection in regards to any incidents occurring that involve an apprentice, as well as any other apprentice-related safety data.

“Additional data will include crash data (incident reports, police reports, insurance reports, inspection data, citation data, safety event data as recorded by all safety systems installed on vehicles, to include advanced driver assistance systems, automatic emergency braking systems, onboard monitoring systems, and forward-facing and in-cab video systems), as well as exposure data, record of duty status logs, on-duty time, driving time, and time spent away from home terminal,” said FMCSA. “This data will be submitted monthly through participating motor carriers.”

Trucking companies can absolutely not skirt around any of these guidelines or safety procedures, Levinson noted, which may be a temptation for carriers rushing to find new drivers to fill vacant roles and meet current consumer demand.

“These drivers are operating 80,000 pounds of metal, and they can wipe out with devastating consequences,” he explained. “Companies have to make sure they’re hiring experienced drivers, that are trained well and that know the safety rules.”

Industry AV Plans Should be Top Priority, According to ATA

January 14, 2022 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

American Trucking Associations is once again urging the U.S. Department of Transportation to adopt new, nationwide policies in regards to autonomous technology deployment for the transportation industry.

This call comes as USDOT begins efforts to renew its near-term strategic plan to further facilitate AV tech deployment within the trucking sector. The department has been seeking industry expert and stakeholder comments on the matter.

“Stakeholder engagement must be central to the department’s strategic plan,” ATA said. “Especially as DOT implements the programs and requirements of the [$1 trillion] Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, we note that partnerships and collaboration with [the] industry will be crucial to [advancing] productivity-boosting and lifesaving AV technologies.”

Other federal initiatives, like the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s industry feedback-reliant voluntary safety self-assessment, will provide a variety of benefits to these efforts, ATA explained.


“Automated trucks present the next transformative opportunity to promote safety, improve the efficiency of freight movement and the U.S. logistics system, and maintain U.S. competitiveness in innovative automotive and mobility technologies,” said ATA in its recent letter to USDOT.

The implementation of these modern technologies should be regular and steady in order for the industry to stay on top of the latest methods of increasing productivity and safety, as well as to continuously meet constantly-changing federal standards, ATA continued.

“The trucking industry relies on interstate highways to facilitate the free flow of goods between states,“ the group explained. “Accordingly, it is important that state and local laws do not create disparities that slow the adoption of these safety and productivity-boosting technologies.”

To remain a competitive industry, regulators must stay ahead of the curve with these changes, as well.

“A clear process and standards-setting role for the federal government that precludes state efforts to regulate vehicle design is a key component of this pathway to commercialization,” said ATA.

Additionally, the department should begin working with agencies across the country to find methods of creating efficiency through performance-centric standards, according to ATA.

“Industry best practices can provide a vital technical basis to assist DOT in [the] evolution of a regulator framework,” ATA explained. “Requiring [AV] to meet a certain level of safety, rather than use any specific technology, can focus regulations on managing risk within specific operating environments.”

DOT should also invest in programs to solve congestion-related issues, ATA said, pointing to rulemakings such as NHTSA’s ‘Framework for Automated Driving Systems Safety,’ and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s ‘Safe Integration of ADS-Equipped CMVs.’ Congestion-solving investments would allow the industry to focus on major freight corridors in order to boost the flow efficiency of the nation’s goods, as the modernization and maintenance of critical connectivity points along the supply chain is currently of the utmost importance.

“We advise against federal policies that are likely to prevent or hamstring state and local agencies’ efforts to expand highway capacity,” said ATA. “This includes conditioning the expenditure of federal funds for new capacity on a showing that alternatives, such as operational strategies or investment in alternative transportation modes, are definitely ruled out.”

Currently, ATA is also calling for further interaction between DOT and the transportation industry itself in regards to next steps in implementing further low-carbon-emission tech in a manner providing proper fueling infrastructure, sufficient testing, and consideration for the needs of truckers.

ATA is also requesting that President Biden find methods of offering state and city guidance for the deployment of electric vehicles as well as overarching standards for charging stations across the country. A stakeholder group aiming to move forward electric vehicle policies should also be set forth by the administration, ATA claims.

USDOT notes that it will continue to work on objectives to “strengthen our world-class organization” through projects improving safety, equity, sustainability, and economic growth, and that it is always working toward advancing “the department’s mission by establishing policies, processes, and an inclusive and innovative culture to effectively serve communities and responsibly steward the public’s resources.”

Stakeholder and public input is requested by the USDOT regarding these plans to “invest in our transportation system to provide American workers and businesses reliable and efficient access to good-paying jobs, resources, and markets.”

A Look Into CVSA’s New Fatigue Management Program

January 5, 2022 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

The North American Fatigue Management Program is now in place within the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance in an effort to reduce driver fatigue and the dangerous incidents that can come along with it.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration initially urged CVSA to create and manage the program, which would operate as a training initiative to educate and prevent overall risks in relation to driver fatigue. FMCSA and Transport Canada are now collaborating with CVSA to bring the program to full force.

Throughout a four-phase, years-long process, medical scientists and sleep analysts within the United States and Canada have worked to implement the North American Fatigue Management Program, which has a variety of methods in place to help finally bring an end to driver fatigue and fatigue-involved crash incidents.

These methods include techniques to identify and treat various sleep disorders, ways to utilize driver fatigue management technology innovations, and support in easily-accessible fatigue prevention training taking place online. Additionally, it includes fatigue prevention education for everyone involved in the transportation process–everyone from driver managers, driver families and spouses, safety managers, and the commercial motor vehicle drivers themselves, to motor carrier executives, motor carrier managers, driver managers, and freight shippers and receivers.

“For the past several years, Canadian and American regulators, carriers, and researchers have worked on the development of a comprehensive approach for managing fatigue,” said NAFMP on its website. “This work has been led by a consortium of government and industry agencies with an interest in developing a more effective means of dealing with professional driver fatigue. The NAFMP Steering Committee agreed to develop a comprehensive FMP that would enhance a carrier’s ability to effectively deal with the challenge of fatigue in a highly competitive, widely dispersed, and rapidly changing industry.”

Additionally, CVSA will work to boost the program and its outreach by offering program information sessions at CVSA conferences and events, hosting steering committee and program meetings to relay program initiatives and improvements, hosting live and pre-recorded question and answer sessions, moderating forums allowing users to ask questions and offer feedback, hosting fatigue management-related webinars and discussions, and offering English, Spanish, and French content to make this information as accessible as possible.

“The multi-year collaborative research to develop, test, and evaluate components of a fatigue management program for commercial vehicle operators has resulted in a thorough understanding of the issues, opportunities, and challenges inherent in managing operator fatigue in a 24/7 motor carrier environment,” explained NAFMP. “The NAFMP was developed through four distinct research, development, and testing phases.”

During phase one, focus groups and motor carriers worked to help in the design of the initiative, with researchers identifying specific fatigue management requirements and creating an effective method of reaching drivers, managers, and dispatchers, with six drivers undergoing initial beta testing.

During phase two, field testing allowed for training and educational materials to be easily assessed and developed, with treatment and screening for sleep apnea being implemented in the program. Six fleets and 38 drivers in Canada began evaluation, followed by eight additional Texas drivers.

Next, 77 commercial vehicle drivers in California, Quebec, and Alberta participated in operational field testing during phase three with findings including positive correlations between reduced critical events and sleep duration and sleep efficiency.

These trends included less fatigue reported in drivers, with improved reported sleep quality on duty days, longer sleep on duty days, a reduction in the proportion of drivers reporting critical events, a significant reduction in critical events per kilometers driven, and duty day improvement regarding sleep duration and sleep efficiency on those days as compared to duration and efficiency in sleep during rest days.

The reduction in drivers reporting critical events had dropped from 46% to 29% during this period, with a 40% overall reduction in critical incidents per kilometer driven.

Finally, phase four involved the creation of the Implementation Manual, training materials, NAFMP website development, and recommended guideline implementation based on all findings from the previous three phases.

Millions in New Grant Funding Finally Given to Highway Safety Initiatives

December 28, 2021 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

Long-awaited infrastructure boosts throughout highways across the country are finally underway as federal programs working to bring about these safety improvements will, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, receive ample new funding.

For safety grants across American highways, NHTSA will offer $260 million as part of the $1 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. This funding comes as an effort to bring vast improvements through certain traffic and roadway safety initiatives, and will work to bring financial aid to various U.S. territories, state-level transportation agencies, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and to Washington, D.C. agencies, as well.

“Traffic crashes take the lives of too many Americans, but these tragedies are not inevitable, and we will not accept them as part of everyday life,” said Pete Buttigieg, Transportation Secretary, in a recent statement. “Bolstered by additional funding from President [Joe] Biden’s bipartisan infrastructure law, these grants will save lives by improving safety on America’s roadways.”

The legislation also depicts the intention to raise overall funding by around 30% for a plethora of safety initiatives, infrastructure programs, and reconstruction efforts.

“The variety of funds available allows each state to target its specific challenges,” said Steven Cliff, Deputy Administrator for NHTSA. “Traffic safety may be a national problem, but the solutions are regional and local.”

$133.3 million of the total funding will be allocated strictly to data-driven traffic programs at the state level for highway safety; some of these programs, according to the United States Department of Transportation, involve programs centering around the enforcement of seat belt laws and safety law education, awareness boosting in regards to dangerous driving risks, and campaigns for high-visibility enforcement.

Funds will also be dedicated to improving parent and caregiver inspection stations to determine whether or not child safety seats have been properly and safely installed, as well as to boosting overall efficiency of traffic records themselves.

“This historic legislation increases NHTSA’s budget by 50%,” said Cliff in front of a U.S. Senate committee during his nomination hearing, noting that this budget makes it “the largest investment in motor vehicle and highway safety since NHTSA was established more than 50 years ago.” Cliff, who was nominated by President Biden to lead NHTSA, made a point to explain the new legislation’s likely positive effects on the overarching safety of American roadways.

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act was set forth by President Biden in mid-November of this year, with supporters of the new $1 trillion infrastructure legislation ensuring that the coming road improvements and overall safety benefits will far outweigh the costs.

“This funding will improve our understanding of where and how crashes happen by improving data quality,” NHTSA’s Cliff continued.

In the first half of this year, the number of deaths in roadway crashes rose by 18.4% as compared to the same period in 2020–the highest number of roadway deaths since 2006, according to an NHTSA report from October.

“This is a crisis,” said Buttigieg following the release of the report. “More than 20,000 people died on U.S. roads in the first six months of 2021, leaving countless loved ones behind. We cannot and should not accept these fatalities as simply a part of everyday life in America.”

Although NHTSA’s report did not specifically point to the number of deaths as a result of truck-related roadway crashes, the statistics are still staggering–around 20,160 died on U.S. roadways in the first six months of 2021, compared to 17,020 in the first half of 2020. For safety advocates, these numbers are a clear indication that many safety-focused changes, projects, and investments need to make their way throughout the country’s infrastructure as soon as possible.

“The report is sobering,” added Cliff in October. “It’s also a reminder of what hundreds of millions of people can do every day, right now, to combat this: slow down, wear seat belts, drive sober, and avoid distractions behind the wheel.”

HOS Regulation Waivers Extended Once Again

December 6, 2021 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

Because of COVID-19 continuing to wreak havoc across the United States, regulatory waivers are being extended by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration regarding the permitted work time for truck drivers.

For commercial truckers driving property-carrying trucks, the maximum driving time has been extended once again–this time until February 28th, 2022.

“Although the number of COVID-19 cases began to decline in the U.S. following widespread introduction of vaccinations, persistent issues arising out of COVID-19 continue to affect the U.S., including impacts on supply chains and the need to ensure capacity to respond to variants and potential rises in infections,” said the FMCSA.

Because of this, commercial carriers and drivers are eligible for the hours-of-service regulation waiver, particularly those working to haul COVID relief-related medical supplies as well as any transportation regarding medical care services and other necessary pandemic response efforts.

“Therefore, a continued exemption is needed to support direct emergency assistance for some supply chains,” continued FMCSA in its waiver announcement. “This extension of the modified emergency declaration addresses national emergency conditions that create a need for immediate transportation of essential supplies and provides necessary relief from the [Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations] for motor carriers and drivers.”

Still, the hours-of-service waiver is limited to transporters of public safety-related goods such as masks, hand sanitizer, soap, medical gloves, disinfectants, vaccines, kits for the administration of vaccines, and vaccine-related ancillary supplies. Additionally, the waiver includes the transportation of gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, ethyl alcohol, food, paper products, and the emergency restocking of any distribution hub, as well as the transportation of livestock and livestock feed. Commercial drivers and carriers with current out-of-service orders are excluded from this waiver.

This emergency regulatory waiver declaration was first announced by FMCSA this summer in an effort to provide regulatory relief in regards to the maximum driving time mandates for both passenger-carrying vehicles and property-carrying vehicles. This declaration was initially designed to ease the strain on the United States’ supply chain, while the White House worked to find additional methods of expediting freight movement.

To do so, the Biden Administration implemented a specific task force that brought about new ways of keeping the country’s freight moving efficiently during the pandemic era; COVID-19 has been blamed as the major factor in commercial supply chain disruption.

Previous hours-of-service relaxation efforts allowed truckers to extend their daily driving time by two hours when working in inclement weather and to drive a total of 14 hours instead of 12. Additionally, drivers were originally allowed to divide their mandatory 10-hour rest breaks into 5-5 or 6-4 hours periods with further control of that time usage–whether they decided to use that particular time to rest or not.

Many safety advocates have lamented these flexibility-boosted waivers, citing the issue of truck driver fatigue—an issue that has become more serious than what recent statistics have shown. In fact, the National Transportation Safety Board has focused heavily on fatigued driving, going as far as to add the overall reduction of fatigue-related traffic accidents to its ‘Most Wanted List’ of safety boosts for 2019 and 2020.

“Drowsy driving does not leave telltale signs,” said the board. “It is widely believed to be underreported on police crash forms.”

The trucking industry has also had a history of high levels of spending in regards to congressional lobbying and campaign contributions related to added flexibility for both truck drivers and their companies, explained FairWarning.

“These [proposals] are opportunities for drivers to be pushed to their limits further, to drive without resting,” said Truck Safety Coalition executive director, Harry Adler. “It’s more [of an] opportunity for a driver to operate while fatigued, which is really detrimental.”

If government proposals like these “are going to keep the highways as safe as–or safer than–they currently exist,” the American Trucking Association needs to dive deeper into the reality of trucker fatigue, said vice president of ATA safety policy, Dan Horvath. “We are not quick to give an immediate response. We really do take the time to do a thorough review, to work with our members.”

NHTSA Says Roadway Deaths Rose 18.4% In First Half of 2021, Ken Levinson Discusses Need for Safe Driving

November 15, 2021 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

In the first half of 2021, the United States saw 20,160 deaths in vehicle crashes on its roadways. This number is an 18.4% increase from the same period in 2020 (which had 17,020 deaths) and is the highest number of roadway deaths in this timeframe since 2006.

This fatality number increase, released by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, is the largest six-month increase to be recorded within the history of the Fatality Analysis Reporting System–a system that has kept track of roadway death statistics since 1979.

“This is a crisis,” said Pete Buttigieg, Transportation Secretary, when NHTSA published its “early estimates” report. “More than 20,000 people died on U.S. roads in the first six months of 2021, leaving countless loved ones behind. We cannot and should not accept these fatalities as simply a part of everyday life in America.”

Overall vehicle miles traveled during the first half of this year rose by around 173 billion miles (13%), according to preliminary data from the Federal Highway Administration. Because of this, the death rate for that time period also increased by around 1.34 deaths per 100 million vehicle miles traveled.

“After the declaration of the public health emergency in March 2020, driving patterns and behaviors in the United States changed significantly,” said the NHTSA Office of Behavioral Safety Research. “Of the drivers who remained on the roads, some engaged in riskier behavior, including speeding, failure to wear seat belts, and driving under the influence of alcohol or other drugs.”

Speeding in general was a major factor in roadway deaths during that timeframe, and extreme speeding became much more common as well, especially as many people were returning to their commutes following the pandemic’s stay-at-home orders.

“Traffic data cited in those reports showed average speeds increased during the last three quarters of 2020, and extreme speeds, those 20 miles per hour or more higher than the posted speed limit, became more common,” said NHTSA.

These numbers show clearly that many people feel compelled to behave more recklessly behind the wheel than they did pre-pandemic.

“The report is sobering,” said Steven Cliff, Deputy Administrator for NHTSA. “It’s also a reminder of what hundreds of millions of people can do every day, right now, to combat this: slow down, wear seat belts, drive sober, and avoid distractions behind the wheel.”

Levinson and Stefani’s Ken Levinson echoed this plea, noting that although these numbers don’t yet show the statistics for traffic deaths involving commercial motor vehicles, trucking companies need to do their due diligence in combating this safety crisis.

“It seems like it’s much more dangerous on the roadways these days, and that’s due to a lot of pressure due to driver shortages, companies not hiring safe drivers, not screening them or training them properly, and a lack of enforcement over a lot of safety rules,” Levinson said. “So, it’s definitely become more dangerous on the roadways. We all have to be cognizant of that, and we encourage everyone in the trucking industry to be aware of it and act accordingly. Hire safer drivers, enforce safety rules, and be diligent.”

It’s also increasingly important that passenger vehicle drivers are as alert and cautious as possible when on the road around heavy trucks, in addition to potentially reckless passenger drivers.

“We have to be really careful around trucks,” Levinson continued. “They’re large, dangerous, and you never know if a truck driver that’s sharing the road with you has exceeded his hours of service, hasn’t been properly trained, might be tired, or might have a health issue–so be careful to drive defensively near trucks.”

When FARS annual report files for 2020 become available this year and its final file for 2020 and annual report file for 2021 become available next year, we’ll have a clearer idea of the actual death counts between 2020 and 2021 and the percentage increases across the two years.

“These estimates will be further refined when the projections for the first nine months of 2021 are released in late December,” said NHTSA.

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