Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Transportation proposed a new rule that would ban interstate commercial truck and bus drivers from using hand-held cell phones while operating a commercial motor vehicle.   Violators would face fines up to $2,750 per offense and multiple offenses could result in suspension of their commercial driver's license (CDL). 

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration research shows that using a hand-held cell phone while driving requires a commercial driver to take several risky steps. In particular, commercial drivers reaching for an object, such as a cell phone, while driving are three times more likely to be involved in a crash or other safety-critical event. Drivers dialing a hand-held cell phone while driving increase their risk by six times. Many of the largest carriers, such as UPS, Covenant Transport, and Wal-Mart, already have company policies in place banning their drivers from using hand-held phones. In September 2010, FMCSA issued a regulation banning text messaging while operating a commercial motor vehicle.
Nearly 5,500 people died and half a million were injured in crashes involving a distracted driver in 2009. Distraction-related fatalities represented 16 percent of overall traffic fatalities in 2009, according to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) research.

FMCSA is providing 60 days for the public to comment on this rulemaking. The comment period begins once the proposed rule is published in the Federal Register. The proposal and information about how to submit comments is here.

I would encourage everyone to take 5 minutes and go to the comment section of the FMSCA website and voice your support for this safety rule.  Distracted driving contributed to half a million people being injured in 2009 and almost 5,500 being killed.

Small Carriers Sue to Prevent Release of Safety Data

Earlier today I posted the message indicating that the Dep't of Transportation FMCSA was launching it Compliance Safety and Accountability (CSA) Program.  What I failed to point out was that the launch of this new safety program was almost delayed due to last minute lawsuits by some associations that represent commercial carriers. 

These associations filed suit while the companies that contribute to the association remained in the background.  They claimed that allowing the public access to their safety records could put them out of business, particularly in this difficult economic climate.

Over 2700 carriers are members of one of these organizations, but I have been unable to discover the names of these allegedly small companies.  A few of them signed affidavits in the lawsuit, including BP Express, a trucking company that has 6 terminals from Knoxville, TN to West Palm Beach, FL.  Another small company that signed an affidavit for court was Express America Trucking, Inc that employs 165 drivers at 3 terminals in the southeast.   In addition to not being able to find the names of all members of the organization that filed suit, I have been unable to find the guidelines they use to define 'small trucking companies.'    I will keep looking and I invite a representative from the National Association of Small Trucking Companies to shed some light on this issue. 

Dep't of Transportation launches new compliance and safety program

12/13/2010 - FMCSA Launches New Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA) Program for Commercial Trucks and Buses

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) today took a major step toward improving commercial truck and bus safety with the launch of the Compliance Safety Accountability (CSA) program.
The centerpiece of CSA is the Safety Measurement System (SMS), which will analyze all safety-based violations from inspections and crash data to determine a commercial motor carrier’s on-road performance. The new safety program will allow FMCSA to reach more carriers earlier and deploy a range of corrective interventions to address a carrier’s specific safety problems.
“The CSA program will help us more easily identify unsafe commercial truck and bus companies,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. “Better data and targeted enforcement will raise the safety bar for commercial carriers and empower them to take action before safety problems occur.”
The program also advances the Obama Administration’s open government initiative by providing the public with safety data in a more user-friendly format.  This will give consumers a better picture of those carriers that pose a safety risk.  CSA was also tested in nine pilot states before the program was launched.
“We worked closely with our partners in the motor vehicle community to develop this powerful new program,” said FMCSA Administrator Anne S. Ferro. “CSA is an important new tool that will help reduce commercial vehicle-related crashes and save lives.”
The SMS uses seven safety improvement categories called BASICs to examine a carrier’s on-road performance and potential crash risk. The BASICs are Unsafe Driving, Fatigued Driving (Hours-of-Service), Driver Fitness, Controlled Substances/Alcohol, Vehicle Maintenance, Cargo-Related and Crash Indicator. Under FMCSA’s old measurement system, carrier performance was assessed in only four broad categories.
By looking at a carrier’s safety violations in each SMS category, FMCSA and state law enforcement will be better equipped to identify carriers with patterns of high-risk behaviors and apply interventions that provide carriers the information necessary to change unsafe practices early on.
Safety interventions include early warning letters, targeted roadside inspections and focused compliance reviews that concentrate enforcement resources on specific issues identified by the SMS.
FMCSA will continue to conduct onsite comprehensive compliance reviews for carriers with safety issues across multiple BASICs. And, where a carrier has not taken the appropriate corrective action, FMCSA will invoke strong civil penalties.

Critter Crossings Improve Highway Safety

Highway underpasses for animals make roadways safer for wildlife and cars, a new study finds.

Researchers looked at a new route planned for U.S. Highway 64 that cut through a forested and agricultural area in Washington County, N.C. The new road included three underpasses with fencing that ran alongside the road near each underpass to funnel animals into the underpasses.

The study is published in the current issue of the Journal of Wildlife Management.

The researchers used cameras and animal track surveys to monitor wildlife activity. During the 13 months after the road was completed, the cameras took 2,433 photos of various animals using the underpasses, including deer, bears, raccoons and domestic dogs and cats.

When the researchers compared data from nearby sections of Highway 64, they found that wildlife deaths were 58 percent lower on the new part of the highway.

The findings suggest that the wildlife underpasses are a cost-effective way to reduce wildlife-vehicle collisions, said the researchers.

While I like the idea of underpasses to reduce accidents, the Arizona Highway Department has also experimented with a cheaper alternative that seems to be working well.  It was tested in areas where underpasses were cost prohibitive.  The alternative is a 'electric crosswalk.'  Basically fences funnel game to a specific opening where the crosswalk is build.  Using thermal imaging cameras and military-grade tracking software to capture large animal movement in the right of way the system then determines if the animal is large enough to pose a threat to motorists.  If so a flashing sign 500 feet from the end of the fence warns drivers.

Tractor-trailer hits school bus in Louisiana, 2 kids critical

Early this morning a JB Hunt owned truck slammed into the back of a school bus.  The crash happened around 7:30 a.m. on a straight, clear stretch of U.S. 190 between Port Barre and Opelousas, about 50 miles west of Baton Rouge, Louisiana.   The school bus reportedly had it flashers on and stop signs extended at the time of the wreck.  The bus driver apparently saw the truck bearing down on the bus and warned the kids to hold on in anticipation of the collision.  


The impact to the back bumper of the bus was sufficient to push up to the rear wheels of the bus.   For some reason, the truck driver has yet to be cited, although it seems clear that he was driving too fast and failed to keep a proper distance and lookout.  


As someone who has litigated tractor-trailer cases, it is very important to preserve as much evidence as possible and to do so quickly.  The driving logs of the truck driver need to be examined as well as his cell phone and texting records.  Also, data from all event recorders on the truck need to be downloaded immediately, to avoid any loss of data.  


Thankfully, emergency workers arrived quickly and efficiently dispatched injured kids to area hospitals where they received timely treatment.  All 21 kids were injured, 3 originally classified as critical and two underwent emergency surgery.   Let's all hope for complete recoveries for the kids and that JB Hunt and the driver take appropriate responsibility for the wreck.

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration Safety Announcements

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has recently announced some modifications in the Safety Measurement System (SMS) that will be rolled out to the nation in December.  This is a part of the FMCSA's initiative entitled CSA 2010 (Compliance, Safety, Accountability).  The changes include the following:

1. Modify the presentation of SMS BASIC results

• Change the term “Deficient” to “Alert” when a motor carrier’s score in one or more BASICs is above the FMCSA threshold for intervention. 
• Change the highlight color from red to orange.
• Improve the language to clarify that BASIC results signify the carrier is prioritized for an FMCSA intervention.

2. Modify Cargo-Related BASIC

• Recalibrate the Cargo-Related BASIC by adjusting the cargo securement violation severity weightings based on input from subject matter experts (SMEs).
• Modify the public display to show the SMS Cargo-Related BASIC violations only.  The percentiles and intervention status will not be on public display.

BASIC refers to the CSA SMS's Behavior Analysis and Safety Improvement Categories.   Let's hope the new system does provide more accountability for drivers and the trucking companies and thus promotes better compliance and safety.    However, removing the percentiles and intervention status from the public displays does not seem to promote accountability. I am anxious to see what the additional analysis leads the FMCSA to do with this category.

Don't Drive Drowsy this Holiday Season

More than 40 percent of drivers say they've fallen asleep at the wheel, and about one in ten admitted doing so during the past year, according to a study released Monday by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, a nonprofit research and educational organization.  One in every six deadly car crashes results from a fatigue-impaired driver, estimates the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. That's compared to about one in three caused by a drunk driver.  "Sleepiness decreases awareness, slows reaction time, and impairs judgment, just like drugs or alcohol," said AAA Foundation President Peter Kissinger in a statement released with the new study.

If you are traveling with your family for the holidays, make sure you get sufficient rest prior to the trip.  Even shorter trips of 2 to 4 hours can be deadly if you are not rested.  Just as importantly, drive defensively and be watchful of other drivers who may be fatigued.  Tractor-trailers present a greater danger when their drivers are fatigued and many of them are also trying to get home for the holidays after a long haul and tempted to drive longer than is safe. 

Keep a close lookout for tractor-trailers and be aware that fatigued tractor-trailer drivers will react more slowly to dangers and are more slow to recognize dangers.  Avoid their blind spots.  If passing a tractor-trailer, be careful not to linger in their blind spot more than necessary.   The blind spot is the point where your car becomes invisible to his mirrors.  Tractor-trailers often have larger blind spots than automobiles.  If you look at his rear view mirrors and can't see the driver's face, you could be in the blind spot. 

Remember these rules and keep your family safe for the holidays. 

Tractor-Trailers and Rear Impact Protection

Most of you have probably seen the rear guards on the back of a tractor- trailer and not paid much attention to them.  For those involved in a rear end collision with a tractor-trailer, those guards may represent the difference between life and death.  They are designed to prevent a car from sliding under the trailer upon impact.  If proper rear guards are in place, your bumper should impact the rear guard.  Your bumper is designed to absorb considerably more force than your windshield (or your head) and therefore reduce the amount of force your body receives. 

In 1996 the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) required trucks with GVWR over 10,000 and manufactured after January 26, 1998 be equipped with underride guards with strength testing and energy absorption requirements.  Rear guards had been required since 1952, but prior to 1998 they didn't have to meet energy absorption requirements or strength testing.   Also, the 1998 changes require now that the rear guards be no more than 22 inches above the ground, no more than 4 inches from each side of the trailer, and no more than 12 inches offset from the rear plane of the trailer. 

Preliminary data suggest these new guidelines are reducing fatalities and serious injuries to person involved in tractor-trailer wrecks. The report can be found at
http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/811375.pdf

The NHTSA allows public comment on this report for 120 days from the date of report.  The comment period will end March 8, 2011.  If anyone wants to comment on this report, they can do so at the following site:
http://www.federalregister.gov/articles/2010/11/08/2010-28111/federal-motor-vehicle-safety-standards-rear-impact-guards-rear-impact-protection-technical-report-on

Colorado Trucking Company - Repeated Violations of Hour-of-Service Rule Leads to Order

The U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) today announced it has ordered JBS Carriers, Inc. of Greeley, Colorado to install electronic on-board recorders (EOBRs) on its entire fleet of over 700 commercial trucks by March 2011 or pay $81,780 in civil fines.

The order comes in response to a comprehensive investigation by FMCSA's Western Service Center that found the company in serious violation of federal hours-of-service (HOS) rules and commercial driver's license (CDL) requirements.

In the final settlement agreement issued by FMCSA on October 7, 2010, the agency cited JBS Carriers for 102 counts of falsifying drivers' hours-of-service records and three counts of allowing drivers with a suspended, revoked or canceled commercial driver's license to operate a motor vehicle.

Electronic on-board recorders are devices attached to commercial vehicles that automatically record the number of hours drivers spend operating the vehicle. Driving hours are regulated by federal hours-of-service rules, which are designed to prevent commercial vehicle-related crashes and fatalities by prescribing on-duty and rest periods for drivers.

Arkansas Behind the Curve

The Federal Highway Administration, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety and several state departments of transportation are promoting traffic roundabouts as safer alternatives to intersections with traffic lights.  Arkansas, however, is not one of the 29 states with a program to promote such roundabouts.

The Federal Highway Administration has more information and data on why roundabouts can be safer than traffic light intersections.  They site 3 specific ways that roundabouts improve safety at intersections by:

• eliminating or altering conflicts types
• decreasing speeds into and through the intersection
• decreasing speed differentials at intersections

Roundabouts can easily accommodate tractor-trailer traffic.  A critical design element that allows trucks to successfully negotiate a roundabout is the truck turning apron, which is located in the middle of the roundabout. This apron is designed for the back wheels of the trucks to drive over. This is accomplished by designing the curb to be mountable.

Mountable curbs are shorter than regular curbs and the concrete apron is colored to deter regular passenger vehicles from using it.

I have personally litigated a number of wrecks caused by tractor-trailer drivers making improper right turns.  I think properly constructed roundabouts would also help avoid wrecks caused when tractor-trailers make wide right turns.

The complete US Department of Transportation report on roundabouts is available at http://www.tfhrc.gov/safety/00068.htm

2010 Auto Insurer Rankings

A state Insurance Department recently released its 2010 rankings for auto insurance companies based on the number of 'upheld' complaints against it.  Nationwide Mutual Insurance company scored best with no upheld complaints out of 55 filed complaints.  That was in spite of 140 million in premiums to Nationwide for 2008 and 2009.   GEICO also scored in the upper half with 448 complaints but only 15 upheld.

Allstate didn't fare nearly as well.  They received 1,023 complaints, of which 180 were upheld, the lowest score of any company averaging more than 100 million in premiums.  Next lowest of that larger group was Travelers Home and Marine followed by State Farm and Progressive.

The full report can be found at:
 http://www.ins.state.ny.us/auto/2010/auto2010.pdf

Is U.S. Chamber of Commerce 'Sue Happy?'

The Chamber of Commerce launched a PR campaign against frivolous lawsuits in December 2009.  They have spent millions fighting to protect  tobacco companies, asbestos companies and other chemical companies.  They have a multi-million dollar affiliate, the Institute for Legal Reform that is dedicated to restricting the ability of injured persons to file suit, particularly against corporations. 

Yet, despite all the millions spent to deny American citizens access to the court system, the Chamber has itself filed suit or entered into lawsuits at the astounding rate of more than 2 per week (in 2009, for example, they filed or entered into 131 cases).  The overwhelming majority of lawsuits it files or enters is not on behalf of small business owners, but instead for large corporations ranging from Enron, AIG and other insurance companies, and drug companies.

The Chamber has its own litigation arm, The National Chamber Litigation Center and among the legal positions it has taken are these:

• sought to shield pharmaceutical executives who skirted safety procedures and ultimately killed 11 children
• fought for lead paint manufactures found to have poisoned thousands of children
• tried to force workers, instead of employers, to pay for their own safety equipment
• opposed measures allowing workers to receive a rest period during a full work day

• justified the actions of Wall Street banks that drove the country's economy into turmoil

I personally will defend right of The U.S Chamber of Commerce to file lawsuits on behalf of large corporate interests.  But the Chamber should represent the rights of all citizens and all businesses, large or small.

A report, titled “The Chamber Litigation Machine: How the Chamber Uses Lawsuits to Keep Americans out of Court,” can be found at www.justice.org/USChamber.  

Allstate fined $10 million for its claims handling

Anyone who has tried to deal with Allstate in a motor vehicle collision claim understands how difficult they are to deal with.  Allstate has over the past years been quite reliant on a computer assisted claim evaluation program that allows managers greater oversight and control over individual adjusters.   The data can be manipulated, however, to prevent adjusters from offering fair compensation.  I am frequently forced to file a lawsuit against an Allstate insured because I am unable to get a reasonable settlement and often I feel like the adjuster is not even listening to our case, but instead bound by what his/her computer says. 

On October 18, 2010, the New York State Insurance Department announced that Allstate Insurance Company has agreed to pay a TEN MILLION DOLLAR regulatory settlement concerning its improper use of claims handling software; Colossus. The multi-state investigation was lead by the insurance departments of New York, Florida, Illinois and Iowa and included 41 other States. According the the press release from the NYS Department of Insurance the investigation found "inconsistencies in Allstate's management and oversight of the Colossus software program. In particular, the examination found that Allstate had failed to modify or 'tune' the software in a uniform and consistent manner across its claims handling regions." Press Release.

Don't let Halloween turn into a nightmare

As kids trick or treat around our neighborhoods, let's all take the extra safety precautions.  Halloween evening is historically one of the highest days of the year for traffic accidents and fatalities.  In 2008 there were 125 deaths between 6:00 pm October 31 to 5:59 am November 1st.  Of those fatalities, 60% involved the use of alcohol.

• Impaired drivers who fail to plan ahead, turn the roads into a real-life horror show. A few simple tips to avoid a drunk driving nightmare:
  • Plan a safe way home before the festivities begin;
  • Before drinking, please designate a sober driver and give that person your keys;
  • If you’re impaired, use a taxi, call a sober friend or family member, or use public transportation so you are sure to get home safely;
  • Use your community’s Sober Rides program
  • If you happen to see a drunk driver on the road, don’t hesitate to contact your local law enforcement.
    
    
    
    
    

Best States for Drivers

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/39712813/ns/business-forbescom/

This is an interesting article ranking states based on 4 factors, gas prices, infrastructure and safety, insurance rates, legal protections. California came in last. The survey didn't appear to consider legal protections for persons injured in car wrecks, but instead legal protections for persons who violated safety rules, which seems a major flaw in the survey. In other words, your state would rank higher (supposedly better) if it had strong legal protections for truck drivers who get speeding tickets, but it would rank lower (worse) if it had strong legal protections for injured parties.

Unfortunately, that type of thinking is typical when profits are valued over responsibility.