Wednesday, November 27, 2013
Monday, November 25, 2013
The Trucking Industry's Top 10
Since 2005, the American Trucking Associations has turned to the
American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI) to survey trucking industry
stakeholders to identify the top issues of concern. And for the 2013 annual
survey, there was no shortage of topics for the industry to choose from.
First and foremost were the changes to the federal Hours-of-Service
rules which took effect July 1st of this year. Included in the new
rules were limitations placed on the use of the 34-hour restart and a mandated
30-minute rest break for drivers before driving after 8 hours on duty. While
the safety impacts of the HOS changes have yet to be fully understood, the
productivity impacts were immediately felt. Prior to the July 1st
changes, ATRI published research which quantified potential impacts from the
new rules, including productivity costs to the industry of as much as $376
million annually just for the restart changes. Compared to the potential
benefit to the industry of $133 million estimated by the Federal Motor Carrier
Safety Administration (FMCSA), it's clear to see why industry had concern.
That concern was not unfounded. On November 18th ATRI
released its latest HOS analysis, this time clearly documenting actual impacts
on motor carriers and drivers operating under the new rules. Among those
impacts: 80 percent of carriers reported a productivity loss; nearly 70 percent
of drivers reported pay decreases; and more than 80 percent of drivers reported
a negative impact on their quality of life, with 66 percent reporting increased
fatigue levels operating under the new rules. The impacts on driver wages alone
for all over-the-road drivers could total $1.6 billion to $3.9 billion in
annualized loss. These real-world impacts were the subject of a November 21st
congressional hearing by the Small Business Committee's Subcommittee on
Contracting and Workforce.
But hours-of-service isn't the only issue facing the industry. The
industry is still sorting through challenges and conflicts with FMCSA's
Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA) initiative, now in its third year.
Since its nationwide rollout in December 2010, industry groups have identified
a number of challenges within CSA. Two of the most significant areas of concern
surrounding CSA are the lack of crash accountability in CSA scoring and the
inability of CSA scores to accurately predict carrier safety performance. ATRI
released research in 2012 found that only three out of five publicly available
Behavior Analysis Safety Improvement Category (BASIC) scores were positively
correlated with crash rates. The impacts on motor carriers whose safety
performance is being evaluated based on BASIC scores with no relationship to
crash risk is a problem that must be addressed.
Combined, HOS and CSA are exacerbating an already significant driver
shortage. Add to that the increased freight demand resulting from the economic
rebound over the past few years and it's no surprise that finding qualified
drivers is once again near the top of the list of industry concerns. And though
it no longer places first among industry stakeholders, the state of the
nation's economy continues to be a top issue in the annual survey, placing 4th
in the 2013 list of critical industry issues.
Rounding out the top five issues in the annual survey is the Electronic
Logging Device (ELD) mandate. In 2011, FMCSA was forced to vacate a proposed
ELD rule due to a court decision regarding concerns over driver harassment.
FMCSA is expected to release a supplemental notice of proposed rulemaking
(SNPRM) in the next several months that will address ELD performance standards,
requirements for the use of ELDs, requirements related to HOS supporting
documents, and assurances that ELD mandates will not result in driver
harassment. Depending on the nature of the proposed rule, this issue may see a
higher level of concern in the future years' surveys.
Issues 6-10 in the 2013 annual survey are all critical and impact motor
carriers on a day-to-day basis and the inter-connectivity of the issues is
unmistakable. With the recent changes to the HOS rules, Truck Parking (#6 on
the survey) has become even more of a challenge for drivers as they look for
safe places to park for their mandated 30-minute rest break. Solutions for
improving Driver Retention (#7) become increasingly difficult in today's
environment with the impacts on drivers from CSA and the HOS changes.
Issues #8 and #9 (Fuel Prices and Infrastructure/Congestion,
respectively) impact your bottom line and without meaningful and significant
infrastructure investment, congestion will worsen and fuel costs as a
percentage of the industry's overall operating expenses will continue to climb.
In ATRI's 2013 update to the Operational Costs of Trucking research, fuel and
oil was the single highest motor carrier cost center, even more costly than
driver wages and benefits combined.
The #10 issue in the 2013 annual survey, Driver Health and Wellness,
must become a priority for motor carriers and drivers alike if the industry is
going to keep the professional men and women now employed in the industry and
attract new entrants. In addition to obvious lifestyle benefits, an improvement
in driver health may also have positive implications for industry safety as
research has found a positive correlation between driver health and driver
safety.
The Top Industry Issues Survey provides an important indicator of where
the industry's attention is focused and which issues may rise to prominence in
the near future. It's an important tool for providing direction to industry
groups at the state and national levels in terms of the issues and strategies
that motor carriers believe will have the most impact on the industry for years
to come. Armed with this information, state trucking associations and the
American Trucking Associations are better equipped to address the issues more
broadly and proactively.
IFTA / IRP Audit Workshop Coming In February
The IFTA/IRP Audit Workshop, put on every year by the
International Fuel Tax Agreement and the International Registration Plan, is
scheduled next year for February 24-27, 2014, in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.
Committee meetings will follow the workshop on February 28, including the meeting of the IFTA Industry Advisory Committee.
The workshop is always one of the best IRP and IFTA meetings of the year, in attendance, subject matter, and discussions. This year, we expect the hot topics to be the continuing rewrite of IFTA's audit and record-keeping rules and the audit aspects of the Full Reciprocity Plan recently adopted by IRP. Most of the states and provinces will likely send representatives to this meeting; it's important to have a good industry attendance as well.
For more information, or to register, go the IFTA website, www.iftach.org.
Committee meetings will follow the workshop on February 28, including the meeting of the IFTA Industry Advisory Committee.
The workshop is always one of the best IRP and IFTA meetings of the year, in attendance, subject matter, and discussions. This year, we expect the hot topics to be the continuing rewrite of IFTA's audit and record-keeping rules and the audit aspects of the Full Reciprocity Plan recently adopted by IRP. Most of the states and provinces will likely send representatives to this meeting; it's important to have a good industry attendance as well.
For more information, or to register, go the IFTA website, www.iftach.org.
Sunday, November 24, 2013
ATRI Study Identifies Significant Impact from New HOS Rules
The American Transportation Research Institute released the
findings of its latest analysis of the operational and economic impacts
resulting from the new Hours-of-Service (HOS) rules, which went into effect
July 1, 2013.
Among the operational and economic impacts identified by
ATRI are:
More than 80 percent of motor carriers surveyed have
experienced a productivity loss since the new rules went into effect, with
nearly half stating that they require more drivers to haul the same amount of
freight.
Among commercial drivers surveyed by ATRI, 82.5 percent
indicated that the new HOS rules have had a negative impact on their quality of
life, with more than 66 percent indicating increased levels of fatigue.
Commercial drivers are forced to drive in more congested
time periods, although the FMCSA Regulatory Impact Analysis did not address
increased safety risks with truck traffic diversion to peak hour traffic.
The majority of drivers (67%) report decreases in pay since
the rules took effect.
The impacts on driver wages for all over-the-road drivers
total $1.6 billion to $3.9 billion in annualized loss.
Saturday, November 16, 2013
Monday, November 11, 2013
Important Notice: FMCSA to Enforce MCS-150 Requirement
Motor carriers and other entities that are required to
have a U.S. DOT number are also required to file a Form MCS-150 with the
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration at least every two years to update
their identifying, contact, and operational information.
This has been the law for a long time, but FMCSA has never strictly enforced it. However, the agency now plans to do so, under a regulation that was part of its recently issued Unified Registration System rule. (See the SLN of 8/30/2013. And once again, the URS has nothing to do with the UCRA)
FMCSA has now indicated how they'll go about this enforcement. Starting next month, the agency will send a letter to carriers that are due to update their information in January 2014 reminding them to do so. In February, the FMCSA will check its system to see if those carriers complied. If a carrier did not, its DOT number will be deactivated on April 1. FMCSA will adhere to a similar schedule in each succeeding month for carriers whose two-year window expires in the months following January.
Although information from the MCS-150s filed by carriers and other entities is critical for FMCSA's master database, the Motor Carrier Management Information System, MCMIS, much of the enforcement of the filing requirement has in effect been left up to the states that participate in the federal PRISM program. Under PRISM, a state participating in the program may not renew the International Registration Plan registration of a carrier unless it has updated its MCS-150 information within the preceding twelve months. And most states participate in PRISM.
This has been the law for a long time, but FMCSA has never strictly enforced it. However, the agency now plans to do so, under a regulation that was part of its recently issued Unified Registration System rule. (See the SLN of 8/30/2013. And once again, the URS has nothing to do with the UCRA)
FMCSA has now indicated how they'll go about this enforcement. Starting next month, the agency will send a letter to carriers that are due to update their information in January 2014 reminding them to do so. In February, the FMCSA will check its system to see if those carriers complied. If a carrier did not, its DOT number will be deactivated on April 1. FMCSA will adhere to a similar schedule in each succeeding month for carriers whose two-year window expires in the months following January.
Although information from the MCS-150s filed by carriers and other entities is critical for FMCSA's master database, the Motor Carrier Management Information System, MCMIS, much of the enforcement of the filing requirement has in effect been left up to the states that participate in the federal PRISM program. Under PRISM, a state participating in the program may not renew the International Registration Plan registration of a carrier unless it has updated its MCS-150 information within the preceding twelve months. And most states participate in PRISM.
Thursday, November 7, 2013
Tuesday, November 5, 2013
SMS Preview Available Now
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) is proposing enhancements to the display of information on the SMS Website. The proposed redesign is intended to advance FMCSA’s safety mission by making important information easier to understand for motor carriers who want to improve their safety performance and for public users interested in FMCSA data. In keeping with its dedication to transparency and commitment to consistently improve the SMS, FMCSA is providing a preview of the SMS Website display. These proposed enhancements do not include changes to the SMS methodology.
These proposed changes aim to:
- Provide easier, more intuitive navigation and user-friendly features
- Provide a “one-stop-shop” for FMCSA safety information for the public, motor carriers, and industry
- Retain and provide easy access to detailed information and new performance monitoring tools
- Carriers may preview how their data would appear publicly, if the proposed changes were implemented by logging into the FMCSA Portal and selecting SMS Preview using their U.S. DOT Number and PIN on https://csa.fmcsa.dot.gov/SMSPreview/.
- The public may view the proposed changes by looking at sample carrier data available at https://csa.fmcsa.dot.gov/SMSPreview/.
Since the launch of the SMS, FMCSA expected to make enhancements as new data and additional analyses became available. As stated in its March 27, 2012 Federal Register notice, FMCSA plans to apply a systematic approach to making improvements to SMS, prioritizing and releasing packages of improvements as needed. Consistent with its prior announcements, the Agency proposes changes to the design of the SMS public Website that are the direct result of feedback from stakeholders regarding the information displayed. The Agency is not proposing changes to the SMS methodology at this time.
Learn more by attending a webinar: Motor carriers and other interested stakeholders are invited to attend a webinar that will explain the proposed SMS display changes and answer frequently asked questions. Webinars will take place on the following dates and times:
- Monday, November 18, 2013, 12-1:30 p.m. Eastern Standard Time
- Thursday, November 21, 2013, 1:30-3 p.m. Eastern Standard Time
- Friday, November 22, 2013, 11:30-1 p.m. Eastern Standard Time
Share your input: The 60-day SMS Preview comment period begins on November 5, 2013. A posting of the Federal Register Notice (https://federalregister.gov/a/2013-26543) outlining the changes is available for review. Written comments regarding the changes can be filed to the Federal Docket Management System (http://www.regulations.gov/), Docket ID Number FMCSA-2013-26543. FMCSA will review comments and make any necessary changes prior to implementation.
Questions or concerns: The CSA Outreach Website has technical assistants who can answer motor carrier questions about the SMS Website display as well as the CSA program itself. Questions can be submitted by phone (877-254-5365). Comments to the proposed display changes should be submitted to the Federal Docket management System after the Federal Register Notice is published.
Stay connected: Subscribe to the CSA Website to keep abreast of current program information at http://csa.fmcsa.dot.gov/subscription.aspx.
Monday, November 4, 2013
LoadTrek Training Webinar Schedule and Topics - Week of November 4th 2013
Webinars will last approximately 30 minutes, with 20-25 minutes of instruction followed by a 5-10 minute Q & A session.
Invitations and links to register for the next scheduled webinar will be sent prior to each session. All webinars will be recorded and posted to the existing LoadTrek training video library.
Date Time Topic
11/5/2013 15:00 Central HOS Interface - Clearing the Browser History / Cache
11/7/2013 13:00 Central
HOS Interface - Using the Filter Options
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