trucking legislation

Senate Prioritizes Freight Policy Legislation

July 26, 2021 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

Funding and policy updates in relation to federal freight programs are under discussion as U.S. Senate leaders deliberate a multi-trillion dollar infrastructure bill.

The consideration of a $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure package has received strong backing from President Joe Biden as well as from Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. The deliberation of the package has also brought with it Schumer’s leadership team’s goal to begin the debate over a $3.5 trillion budget plan on the Senate floor. This plan would focus upon tax policy change and the climate crisis.

A major part of the Biden Administration’s efforts in modernization are boosting severe-weather resilience and improving overall connectivity along the nation’s freight corridors. This kind of infrastructure and social program modernization, along with the infrastructure bill and policy package themselves, are key components of Biden’s “Build Back Better” plan.

“We’re going to get something done,” said Biden in a White House meeting with local and state officials. “And that’s why I think that my ‘Build Back Better’ agenda is all about not just building back, but [building] back better than what we inherited. Mayors and governors, you know how to get this done and what we have to do. It’s time to stop talking about it and time to get you the resources.”

The bipartisan infrastructure package is likely to include legislation like the highly-prioritized, $78-billion measure that will upgrade trucking, freight, and rail safety programs across the country, senior congressional staffers and transportation policy experts claim. Freight network improvements are a main focus of Schumer and other Democratic Leaders throughout the House and the Senate.

Through reconciliation, a budget bill like this could advance with a simple majority vote, although an infrastructure policy bill would need high levels of bipartisan Senate support to override debate filibuster policies. Congress is also likely to halt August recess legislative action.

“If we pass this, this is the most profound change to help American families in generations,” said Schumer.

In general, democratic goals will comprise many of the Senate’s budget this year, added Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

“The Senate budget will contain many of House Democrats’ top priorities, including transformative action on the investments needed to confront the climate crisis, to transform the care economy, and to expand access to health care,” she said..

Still, many Senate Republican leaders oppose these proposals due to their focus outside of what typically encapsulates the infrastructure system–such as health programs, social care, and methods of addressing the climate crisis.

“Our colleagues need to take this summer and think very carefully about what they’re discussing.” said Senate Minority leader Mitch McConnell. “It would be hard to imagine a proposal less suited to the conditions our country is facing. Americans cannot afford another socialist borrowing, taxing, and spending spree that will kill jobs and raise costs for working families.”

Through the Commerce Committee’s highway policy bill, $4.6 billion would be offered to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to fund safety initiatives, law enforcement training, and human trafficking education programs for commercial vehicle companies and drivers. It would also set forth around $1.2 billion annually for the Infrastructure for Rebuilding America (INFRA) grants program, and allow an additional $1.5 billion each year for the Department of Transportation’s infrastructure grant program. Another $2 billion would be dedicated to other nationally significant transportation projects.

Additionally, the bill would implement an apprenticeship program to help commercial driver license holders under the age of 21 to be able operate commercial motor vehicles within interstate commerce operations.

“This important bipartisan legislation makes a $78 billion down payment on rebuilding and revamping our nation’s critical infrastructure, a key to our economic future and creating jobs,” noted Maria Cantwell, Commerce Committee Chairwoman. “Together, this committee succeeded in passing legislation that makes [an] infrastructure investment that we need to be competitive in a global marketplace.”

Minneapolis Announces Truck Parking Ban in Midst of Truck Parking Crisis

July 25, 2021 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

Alongside a proposed ban on truck parking throughout Minneapolis, the Minneapolis City Council’s Transportation and Public Works Committee has recently voted to begin fining violators of the new mandate.

The current ordinance throughout the city prohibits trucks weighing more than 26,000 pounds from parking in residentially-zoned streets, although the weight cap does not apply to other areas. The Transportation and Public Works Committee deliberated this topic at the end of June, and revisited the topic for further consideration this month.

On July 14th, the committee approved a measure that would introduce fine gradations in relation to truck parking violations. These fines will begin at $100 per violation on January 1st of next year, rise to $150 on January 1st of 2023, and in 2024, would rise to $250 per violation.

This comes as an amendment to the previous proposal that called for fines reaching $250 by January 1st, 2023.

“This change gives a certain amount of grace to drivers while continuing to increase the fines,” explained Ward 6-representing Council Member Jamal Osman, who noted that many people in his community work as truck drivers.

These newly-proposed fines come as a response to both business and resident complaints which claimed that many trucks were obstructing fire hydrants, street signs, and car and bicycle travel lanes, as well as reducing the amount of guest parking availability and creating an abundance of noise and litter.

A measure was also approved that would urge the Department of Community Planning and Economic Development to collaborate with other groups in working toward implementing more spaces for truck parking throughout Minneapolis. The measure noted that these efforts should include railroad companies and commercial property owners, as well.

Another provision requesting that the Intergovernmental Relations staff of Minneapolis work alongside regional partners like the League of Minnesota Cities to find solutions regarding truck parking obstacles throughout the Twin Cities was approved, as was a provision directing city staff to report on the city’s overall truck parking capability development and the progress of enforcement and education efforts regarding these potential regional solutions. The report should be delivered to the council by the fourth quarter of 2022, the provision stated.

In regards to the newly-instated truck parking ban, all trucks weighing more than 26,000 pounds would be prohibited from parking on any street within the city of Minneapolis unless they have stopped due to a police officer’s direction, they are actively loading or unloading, or they are situated in a zone with signage which allows for the parking of these heavy vehicles.

As can be expected, these proposed restrictions have been met with strong opposition from the trucking industry–the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association and the Minnesota Trucking Association were both quick to bring to attention the Minneapolis-dwelling independent contractors who have to park their trucks somewhere overnight.

“The Minnesota Trucking Association is extremely disappointed,” said John Hausladen, President of the MTA. “The language adopted today puts the city in a purely reactive role, providing interested parties with only site search assistance. Language asking for greater regional solutions is all good, but it doesn’t change the fact [that] starting January 1st, 2022, trucks will be ticketed for parking on Minneapolis city streets with no new safe parking options.”

For these truckers, there must at least be options for them to park their big rigs at rest areas with restrooms and food options, added Todd Spencer, President of OOIDA.

“In other words, a lot of trucks probably park in Minneapolis because they simply lack any reasonable alternative,” he said.

This mandate comes at a time when truck parking capacity is a well-known issue for the entire trucking industry across the United States–a problem currently ranking third on the American Transportation Research Institute’s report on Top Industry Issues.

Heat Waves Affect Trucking Companies Across U.S.

July 23, 2021 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

Many states across the U.S. are enduring extreme heat waves following an already hotter-than-usual month of June. Still, these states are determined to keep trucking operations moving as usual.

“While we can’t control the weather, we can control what we do,” tweeted the governor of Montana recently. “Remember to use caution when working or recreating outdoors.”

In Montana, Governor Greg Gianforte has declared a state-of-emergency throughout the state for fire and drought conditions; this declaration also implements regulatory relief for truck drivers. Specifically, commercial vehicle drivers offering services to fire suppression efforts during dangerous fire conditions as well as those helping with the transportation of water, forage, and agriculture implements during drought conditions will be granted hours-of-service requirement flexibility under the executive order.

In Thompson Falls, Montana, on the west side of the state, mid-July temperatures have reached highs of around 95 degrees.

According to Gianforte’s office, around 91% of the state of Montana has been experiencing “abnormally dry to extreme” drought conditions since last month. During this same period in 2020, only about half of the state was undergoing these kinds of conditions.

“Every region of the state faces severe to extreme drought conditions, and the situation is getting worse,” said the governor.

In Las Vegas, temperatures have reached as high as 113 degrees, and Redding, California has seen highs of around 100 degrees this month. Temperatures in Idaho have been hitting around 101 degrees in mid-July and have stayed nearly as high lately, especially in areas around Boise.

Because these highs are nearly unprecedented in many areas, safety consideration information has been sent to members of the Idaho Trucking Association with precautions for truck drivers, telling them to stay as rested and hydrated as possible.

“Everybody’s been running their business as usual,” said Idaho Trucking Association President, Allen Hodges. “At the same time, people have been taking precautions because of the heat.”

Idaho is gearing up for potential 100-degree days or higher in August, Hodges said, and the Association–located west of Boise in Meridian, Idaho–has already seen temperatures of at least 98 degrees.

In Arizona, one of the hottest states in the country, temperatures have already followed an “early heating trend,” reaching up to 117 degrees in June–which isn’t even the hottest month of year, noted Tony Bradly, President of the Arizona Trucking Association. The Association is based in Tolleson, an area the National Weather Service predicts will reach temperatures of at least 111 degrees throughout the month of July.

“We’re fairly used to being on the surface of the sun,” said Bradley, who added that he made sure to remind drivers to keep their tire pressure in mind when operating in such extreme conditions.

“You want to make sure that your tire pressure is correct, because if your tire pressure is low, that could lead to blowouts,” he said.

Pre-trip inspections are key during times like these, and making sure anti-idle devices and coolant hoses are working properly is vitally important, explained California Trucking Association and Liberty Linehaul West Inc. president, Greg Dubuque.

Additionally, truckers should take note that the big windows on large trucks can allow in a lot of heat and sunlight–so skin protection should be a priority. He even goes as far as to tell drivers to position their trucks toward the west if they are parking in a rest area overnight.

“With more glass in the cab of the truck, there’s more sunlight coming in, bringing more heat,” during the sunrise, and in general, Dubuque noted.

When trucks are hauling goods that can be affected negatively by high temperatures–like crops or livestock–truckers should be sure to do their loading and unloading when temperatures are at their lowest during the morning and evening. Carriers must make sure the arrival of living goods is done as safely and healthily as possible, explained American Trucking Associations’ Agricultural and Food Transporters Conference executive director, Jon Samson.

Idaho, North Dakota, Nevada, and California, which are all enduring extreme heat right now, have not yet been issued any restrictions or guidance from their transportation agencies regarding their freight loads being shipped during this time.

Hazmat Transport Needs Boosts, PHMSA Says

July 21, 2021 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

In an effort to improve hazardous material transportation methods, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration is looking for insight regarding innovative research and advancement techniques.

Because new standards on transportation for things like aerosols and explosives (in small quantities) as well as for non-bulk and bulk packaging are highly needed, the Administration is specifically requesting new ideas on the research of safer shipment methods. Additionally, the agency is calling for further research into dissolved gases in liquids and their hazards, along with the regulation of particular quantities and types of hazardous materials that comprise these kinds of shipments.

“PHMSA is soliciting research ideas from the public for hazardous materials transportation safety,” announced the agency in a recent tweet. “All submissions should relate to one of the five research topics…the best proposals may be awarded federal funding.”

PHMSA will award this funding through “Broad Agency Announcement,” grants that will range anywhere from $250,000 to $2 million for this research. “White papers” consisting of this new testing and data analysis must be sent to PHMSA by the end of the day on August 24th, according to the agency’s announcement.

PHMSA works to create regulatory standards for the handling, packaging, and even classifying of hazardous material shipments and their transportation throughout the country; these shipments make up more than 1 million of the United States’ daily total shipments. Now, the agency is cracking down on reducing the number of potential risks brought about by this kind of transportation by making a major effort in boosting their research and technical contracts.

PHMSA has been searching for innovative classification and research projects for many years, and has recently been looking into projects regarding bulk hazardous material liquid transportation spill incidents as well as biologically-derived fuel transportation classification and standards.

Now, the agency’s top five research subjects include deregulation, explosives, aerosols, gases, and bulk and non-bulk packaging.

For deregulation, the agency explained that current data depicts some non-bulk quantities of hazardous materials making up most transport-related incidents, although the transportation of these materials doesn’t often account for any transportation interruptions or injuries. Therefore, PHMSA infers that non-bulk hazardous materials in small quantities may be presently over-regulated, and will make an effort to ascertain whether or not there are any ways to relax hazardous material transportation regulations in regards to non-bulk quantities while maintaining overall safety standards.

For explosives, current Class 1 material transportation calls for classification approval by the Department of Transportation, and PHMSA believes there may be ways to test some explosive mixtures that could be classified outside of Class 1. Therefore, the industry could see flexibility in regulation and time constraints regarding these materials.

Because aerosols are comprised of a variety of substances such as foams, powders, liquids, gases, or pastes and are still dispensed as gases or liquids, the agency is calling for research into the potential risks that could come with certain kinds of aerosols and their flammability. Additionally, the agency would find it ideal if someone may be able to properly conduct testing and analysis of aerosol flammability in certain measurements, rather than just testing which aerosols are indeed flammable.

Gases, of course, pose many risks of their own, and there are currently no criteria for determining what amount of dissolved gas in liquid can specify the material as being a distinct gas. Additionally, there are a variety of hazards that come with certain combinations of gases and liquids, like when both substances are flammable, or one is flammable and one is non-flammable. Because of this, PHMSA is looking for someone to research these criteria and find what may need to be regulated in specific manners.

Finally, with bulk and non-bulk packaging, the agency believes there needs to be a highly-researched definition, classification, performance standard, service life standard, and testing criteria in regards to how non-bulk packages are regulated. To research this, PHMSA believes researchers should analyze standards for improving criteria in certain non-bulk packages, such as cylinders.

Automated Braking Requirement Could Be in the Works for Big Rigs

July 9, 2021 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

automobile mechanic checking truck in the garage, selective focus

A new proposal could be underway that would begin regulating automatic emergency braking system standards for heavy trucks and would likely require all big rigs to have this kind of technology implemented, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s recent announcement.

These plans would be put in place “over the next year and beyond,” said NHTSA in its mid-June release, which detailed its regulatory agenda for the coming months.

Automated braking systems or collision mitigation are technologies able to apply the brakes of a vehicle in a circumstance where a rear-end crash is probable and the driver has failed to brake or steer away. This is possible due to an alert triggered by the imminent danger through onboard forward-collision warning systems.

The agency is working to set forth a new NPRM on braking systems by April of 2022, following its petition for rule-making on automating braking systems in October of 2015. At that time, the proposal was unable to move forward while Trump was in office.

When the 2015 petition was initially approved by NHTSA, the agency noted that it had already been working on heavy vehicle forward collision avoidance research, as well as research into certain mitigation technologies, for a number of years.

The petition was submitted by groups like Road Safe America, the Center for Auto Safety, Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety and the Truck Safety Coalition. In its research, the agency studied via an ongoing production system field operational test, a driver-warning interface effectiveness evaluation, and first-generation system test track evaluations.

“Based on this research, the agency agrees with the petitioners that forward-collision avoidance and mitigation systems have the potential to save lives by preventing or reducing the severity of rear-end crashes,“ said NHTSA at the time of the petition.

The agency noted the potential to create safer roads–perhaps for the first time in several years–in its most recent announcement.

“Safety is the department’s North Star, and making our roads safer for all Americans is critical,” the agency explained. “The regulatory agenda reflects this–by proposing to make safety technologies like automatic emergency braking standard, to ensure better data collection for autonomous vehicle technology deployments to enable safe innovation, and to update our roadway design and operational practices for the first time in a decade.”

The agency has indeed been researching mitigation technology and forward-collision avoidance on big rigs for many years, the regulatory agenda added. These technologies include both automatic emergency braking system technology and forward-collision warning technology.

“We were excited because, within six months, [NHTSA] granted our petition,” said Road Safe America co-founder Steve Owings in regards to the petition of October 2015. “That was lightning speed for that organization. But, here we are, six years later.”

The NHTSA was put under pressure in early June to create a requirement for commercial motor vehicles to have speed-limiting technology implemented onboard that would include automatic emergency braking systems and set a truck’s maximum speed to 65 miles per hour or 70 miles per hour along with adaptive cruise control. The requirement comes from the Cullum Owings Large Truck Safe Operating Speed Act, named for a young man who was killed on the road when his vehicle was struck by a commercial truck operating on cruise control. The bipartisan act was introduced by Representatives Lucy McBath of Georgia and John Katko of New York, and has received backing from the American Trucking Associations.

Additionally, a new website was recently launched by the agency to streamline the process of providing it with whistleblower information for dealerships, part suppliers, and all motor vehicle manufacturer employees or contractors. Those wishing to share this kind of information with the agency can now find easier methods of doing so on the new webpage, which will help them understand how they should provide certain information and what information is actually important to disclose.

Because there is such an “important role whistleblowers can play in enhancing the safety of the nation’s roadways,” NHTSA explained that it has realized how necessary it is to finally make this system much more easily accessible.

Truck Speed Limiters Bill Introduced in House of Representatives

June 28, 2021 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

A bill requiring speed limiters for commercial trucks has been introduced within the U.S. House of Representatives, and has been named the Cullum Owings Large Truck Safe Operating Speed Act.

The act will aim to urge the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to ensure all commercial motor vehicles have speed-limiting technology implemented onboard. This technology would either have a maximum speed of 65 miles per hour preset, or a speed of 70 miles per hour preset in collaboration with a truck’s automatic emergency braking systems and adaptive cruise control systems.

The bill currently has bipartisan sponsorship by Representatives Lucy McBath of Georgia and John Katko of New York, and is named for Cullum Owings. Owings was killed when a tractor-trailer on cruise control struck his passenger vehicle in 2002.

“The safety and security of our families, our friends, and our loved ones is always of the utmost priority,” said McBath when the legislation was first introduced in late May. “The Owings family has done so much to protect other children like Cullum, and I want to thank them for all they have done. This is an important, bipartisan step to make our roadways safer, protect drivers, and stop these heartbreaking crashes from happening.”

Cullum’s father, Steve Owings, co-founded the safety organization Road Safe America following the incident, and believes the act will help prevent other parents of children from experiencing a loss like the one he and his family had to endure.

“Our lives changed forever in the worst of ways after a speeding truck driver using cruise control crashed into our son’s car, [which was] stopped in an interstate traffic jam as he headed back to college after Thanksgiving Break,” said Owings. “Back then, Susan and I were completely unaware that most large trucks already had speed limiter technology built in, which could have saved our son’s life had it been used. We are so thankful to Representative McBath for understanding the grief of losing a child and for introducing the Cullum Owings Large Truck Safe Operating Speed Act to ensure other families do not suffer the same needless loss we deal with every day because of speeding big rigs.”

The bill was submitted for consideration to a committee of jurisdiction, and gained support from Senator Johnny Isakson of Georgia during its previous Congressional session. Now, many freight stakeholders have begun backing the legislation, and Road Safe America, along with American Trucking Associations, requested support for speed limiter guidelines from Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg earlier in 2021.

In their letter to Buttifieg, the groups noted the 2016 rule making proposal that requested a speed limiter rule, as well as the recent updates within driver assist safety technologies. In the 2016 proposal, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration urged for a requirement that would ensure speed-limiting devices be implemented onto trucks, buses, and multipurpose passenger vehicles weighing more than 26,000 pounds. Additionally, maximum top speeds were recommended in the proposal–of 60, 65, or 68 miles per hour.

It is clear that ATA is worried about strict regulations regarding speed limitations for all commercial motor vehicles.

“When the Department of Transportation initially published the 2016 notice of proposed rule making, ATA and many motor carriers shared several concerns about the efficacy of a one-size-fits-all solution applied to a sector as complex and nuanced as trucking,” wrote ATA President Chris Spear and Road Safe America in their letter to Buttigieg. “Foremost among them were the unintended and potentially dangerous consequences of limiting commercial drivers to one universal speed limit despite the varying limits set for passenger vehicles on interstate and secondary roads.”

The groups added that they were particularly worried about the rule’s longevity as safety technology continues to evolve and more and more commercial trucks are receiving regular tech upgrades than ever.

“Another question is how such a rule would adapt to the rapid evolution taking place in vehicle safety technology,” the letter continued.