ICSA was privileged to attend CVSA’s 2024 Conference in Montana. Many of the things that we learned are in this article.
ICSA has been a member of the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA) since we were chartered so that we can represent the interests of our small carrier members and bring back information about truck enforcement and regulatory trends that might be valuable to you. We were privileged to attend CVSA’s 2024 Conference in Montana and among the things that we learned are:
Vinn White, Deputy Administrator of the FMCSA, reiterated the federal government’s position that “No loss of life is acceptable” and the efforts to achieve the goal of zero fatalities. While the government has statistics on deaths and injuries on the highway, no statistic can measure the number of lives saved by safe operations. In order to achieve this goal, the federal government priorities include:
We also learned that the DataQ process is under review from the bottom up. If the plan goes into effect, there will be no more distinction between factual disputes and regulatory interpretation. Each state will have an implementation plan approved by the federal government, but the federal government will not be involved in the states’ DataQ review processes. In addition, the officer reviewing a DataQ cannot be the inspector or the inspector’s supervisor.
CVSA also supports allowing carriers to use drug testing other than urine tests and adding such testing records to the Drug & Alcohol Clearinghouse. ICSA, of course, supports hair drug testing and requires its members to perform hair testing on all drivers.
CVSA also recommends that all carriers adopt the North American Fatigue Management Program. Please review ICSA’s Model Safety Plan for fatigue management strategies.
In order to assist in combatting human trafficking, CVSA is proposing that the FMCSA require that a commercial driver have a letter authorizing any non-employee passengers.
We look forward to passing along any feedback that our members may have on any of the above. Please send any comments you may have to contact@safecarriers.org.
Every year, TAT (formerly called Truckers Against Trafficking) honors a member of the trucking, bus or energy industry, whose direct actions help save or improve the lives of those exploited or prevent human trafficking from taking place, with the Harriet Tubman Award
Bob Costello has indicated that the freight market has improved – but very slowly – since January. It must be said that ATA’s indices are dominated by contract freight as opposed to spot rates.
Now, however, with Republican control of both houses of Congress and the White House (and, some say, the Supreme Court) I am optimistic that trucking will get a fairer shake than it has during Biden’s term in office.