LoadTrek 101 Training Schedule Released

The LoadTrek University 101 Training series has been released - free for all LoadTrek clients.  Contact us to sign up. 

Date                Time                           Topic

1/9/2012          13:00 Central              Lesson 1 – System Overview, Installation, Terminology, Setup

1/11/2012        13:00 Central              Lesson 2 – Types, Customers, Drivers, Equipment, Locations

1/16/2012        13:00 Central              Lesson 3 – Load Plane, Tree Options, Load Creation and Edit

1/18/2012        13:00 Central              Lesson 4 – Route Plane: Route Creation and Edit

1/30/2012*      13:00 Central              Lesson 5 – Route Plane: Tracking, Messaging, Monitoring

2/1/2012          13:00 Central              Lesson 6 – DOT Information, View, Edit

2/6/2012          13:00 Central              Lesson 7 – Billing Plane, Rates

2/8/2012          13:00 Central              Lesson 8 – Timesheet / Payroll

2/20/2012*      13:00 Central              Lesson 9 – Static Load Plane, Static Load Creation

2/22/2012        13:00 Central              Lesson 10 – Driver Rotations

2/27/2012        13:00 Central              Lesson 11 – Fuel Tickets, IFTA Report

2/29/2012        13:00 Central              Lesson 12 – Reports, Dataviews

3/5/2012          13:00 Central              Lesson 13 – Analysis Plane

3/7/2012          13:00 Central              Lesson 14 – Maintenance Plane

Top 11 Trucking Stories of 2011 - Truckinginfo.com

Update your VMT and PU Data Now

Did You Know…As a motor carrier, your Vehicle Miles Travelled (VMT) and Power Unit (PU) data from your Motor Carrier Registration form, known as the MCS-150, are used to calculate your Unsafe Driving and Crash Indicator Behavior Analysis and Safety Improvement Category (BASIC) percentiles.

If your VMT data is 2009 or older, it will not be used in your calculations when the January Safety Measurement System (SMS) snapshot is posted at the beginning of February.
Update your MCS-150 now with 2010 VMT/PU information or shortly after January 1, 2012 with your 2011 data to ensure FMCSA is using the most accurate data available to calculate your percentiles. Visit https://li-public.fmcsa.dot.gov/LIVIEW/PKG_REGISTRATION.prc_option to update your MCS-150 information. Under the “Existing Registration Updates” section, choose the first option - “I need to update my USDOT number registration information or file my biennial update.”

PLEASE NOTE: The SMS website is updated monthly, so your MCS-150 changes will not be reflected on that site until the next monthly update. You can find the schedule of SMS updates at http://ai.fmcsa.dot.gov/SMS/InfoCenter/#question5. MCS-150 updates show up faster on SAFER and the FMCSA Portal websites.


Thank You,
CSA Web Team
USDOT/Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

Cell Phone Ban FAQ's Available

Do you have questions regarding the ban on cell phone use in commercial motor vehicles?  We have a free FAQ - contact us for a copy. 

2012 US Department Of Transportation Random Drug Testing Rates

What are the DOT's random drug testing rates for 2012?  Contact us for a chart. 

Senate Bill S.1950 Did Not Make it out of Committee

Senate Bill S.1950 (Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Enhancement Act) did not survive Wednesday's markups in committee.  Texas Senator Hutchinson, ranking member on the Commerce Committee, urged rejection of the amendment because they lacked time to review work on the amendment. 

The bill is best known for its individual safety ideas.  However, it was the establishment of a National Freight Rail policy that seemed to solidify opposition to the bill. 

Commercial Motor Vehicle Handheld Mobile Phone Ban

Effective January 3, 2012, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (“FMCSR”) will prohibit commercial drivers from using hand-held mobile phones while operating a commercial truck or bus. Violations of the rule can result in fines of up to $2,750 to drivers and $11,000 to motor carriers.  Habitually offending drivers of this new rule can be disqualified from operating a CMV.  

This new regulation presents challenges for accident defense.  Make certain you have a written and distributed policy statement, that this topic is covered in safety meetings, and that all supervisors are as aware of the law as you and your drivers.  

10 Tips from a Successful Small Business Owner

Senate Bill Would Mandate EOBR's

Senate Bill S.1950 reauthorized the FMCSA.  This bill would require truck operators to use EOBR's to electronically manage drivers' Hours of Service.  The bill would also require a study allowing increased truck weight and size limits, increases FMCSA's ability to revoke operating authority, and strengthens safety requirements for new operating authority applicants. 

Postal Contractors - Can you obtain 99% GPS compliance?

LoadTrek customers do it every week.  Let us know if we can help you:

Claiming your full 179 deduction from the IRS?

If you are planning on implementing onboard technology and/or transportation management software in the near future - you might want to do it this year to take full advantage of the Section 179 special deduction that is part of the American Investment and Recovery Act.  You can learn more about this special deduction here.

Contact us for more information.   

Revision of hours of service rule gets postponed again - to December

Byline: Jami Jones, Land Line senior editor

The long-awaited, much debated, yet still unknown, hours-of-service regulations will be unveiled within the next 30 days according to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.

That revelation came in the latest court filing with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.

The final hours-of-service regulation is currently under review at the Office of Management and Budget. In the Nov. 28 court filing, the agency states that it expects to issue the final rule within the next 30 days – which could wind up being around Christmas or New Year’s. This would be the second time the agency has unveiled HOS regs right around Christmas in as many years. The proposed HOS regs were released on Dec. 23, 2010.

The latest filing is a joint motion to govern further proceedings filed by FMCSA, along with plaintiffs Public Citizen, Teamsters, Advocates for Highway Safety and Truck Safety Coalition. The motion asks that the pending court case remain in “abeyance” for 45 more days. In essence, the motion requests to keep the case on hold until the final regulations are released.

The filing does not give any indication as to what, if any, changes are included in the final regulation.

While the rule is at OMB, it is not available to public view or inspection. The only information provided to the public is:

“This rulemaking would propose changes to the hours of service requirements for drivers operating a commercial motor vehicle transporting property. The requirement for this rulemaking was established on Oct. 26, 2009, when Public Citizen et al. (petitioners) and FMCSA entered into a settlement agreement under which petitioners´ petition for judicial review of the Nov. 19, 2008, final rule on drivers´ hours of service will be held in abeyance pending the publication of an NPRM reevaluating the hours of service rule.”

Lawmakers and industry groups alike have pushed FMCSA not to modify the current hours of service. A Regulatory Affairs, Stimulus Oversight and Government Spending Subcommittee hearing scheduled for Nov. 30 will likely hear more of the same, considering the hearing is titled “The price of uncertainty: How much could department of transportation’s proposed billion dollar service rule cost consumers this holiday season?”

The regulation is on a short list of regulations under consideration in the Obama administration that will cost $1 billion or more. Rep. John Boehner, R-OH, requested the list. In a letter to Boehner, the administration identified the hours-of-service regulations as having an annual cost of $1 billion. That placed HOS seventh on a list of seven pending regs.

Cell-phone ban: Strong first step only, industry says

Cell-phone ban: Strong first step only, industry says

Hours Rule Will Get More Congressional Scrutiny - Truckinginfo.com

Hours Rule Will Get More Hill Scrutiny - Truckinginfo.com

Nation's 20 Most Congested Corridors

Top 20 most congested corridors overall:

1.        Los Angeles Harbor Fwy/CA-110 from I-10/Santa Monica Fwy to Stadium Way/Exit 24C

2.        Los Angeles Harbor Fwy/I-110 from 111th Pl. to I-110/I-10/Santa Monica Fwy

3.        Los Angeles San Diego Fwy/I-405 from I-105/Imperial Hwy. to Getty Center Dr.

4.        New York Van Wyck Expy/I-678 from Belt Pkwy./Exit 1 to Main St./Exit 8

5.        Los Angeles San Gabriel River Fwy/I-605 from Beverly Blvd. to Florence Ave.

6.        Los Angeles Santa Monica Fwy/I-10 from CA-1/Lincoln Blvd./Exit 1B to Alameda St.

7.        Los Angeles Santa Monica Fwy/I-10 from I-5/Golden State Fwy. to National Blvd.

8.        San Francisco I-80 from (James Lick Fwy/Bay Brdg) US-101 to Treasure Island Rd.

9.        San Francisco Grove Shafter Fwy/CA-24 from Saint Stephens Dr. to Caldecott Tunnel

10.     Los Angeles I-110 from W Vernon Ave. to 51st St.

11.     New York I-278 (Gowanus Expy/Brooklyn Queens) from 92nd St./Exit 17 to Apollo St./Meeker Ave./Exit 34

12.     Los Angeles Riverside Fwy/CA-91 from CA-55/Costa Mesa Fwy. to Mckinley St.

13.     New York I-278 (Brooklyn Queens/Gowanus Expy) from NY-25A/Northern Blvd/Exit 41 to NY-27/Prospect Expy/Exit 24

14.     Austin I-35 from US-183/Exit 239-240 to  Woodland Ave.

15.     San Francisco Eastshore Fwy/I-80 EB/I-580 from Cypress St. to University Ave.

16.     Austin I-35 from Shelby Ln/St Elmo Rd/Exit 230 to Martin Luther King Blvd/19th St/Exit 235

17.     Los Angeles CA-110 (Pasadena/Harbor Fwys) from Avenue 60 to Olympic Blvd/9th St.

18.     Los Angeles I-5 (Santa Ana/Golden St. Fwys) from East Ceasar Chavez Ave. to Valley View Ave.

19.     New York Van Wyck Expy/I-678 from Horace Harding Expy/Exit 12A to Linden Blvd/Exit 3

20.     San Francisco Eastshore Fwy/I-80 /I-580 from Cutting Blvd. to Bay Bridge Toll Plaza