Fleet Management News & Business Info | Commercial Carrier Journal
Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/599511
8 commercial carrier journal | november 2015 2 010's implementation of Compli- ance Safety Accountability and the 2013 rewrite of the hours-of-service rule represent arguably two of the most significant changes to trucking dating back to deregulation. And they haven't stopped changing yet. Carriers had no choice but to quickly adapt their businesses to meet the new safe- ty requirements, but no sooner did they do so than the rules suddenly changed again. CSA's methodology has undergone sev- eral challenges and revisions already (with safety fitness determination and several other changes yet to come), and fleets got a welcome rollback of the new HOS rule's 34- hour restart last year. But as of this writing, a six-year highway bill sits in Congress (see page 24) that, if passed, would mean even more changes for CSA and how carriers, shippers and insurers conduct business. And the restart's potential reinstatement hinges on the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration's congressio- nally required study. Meanwhile, carriers are left trying to hit a constantly moving target. With all of the uncertainty around CSA and HOS, it's no surprise they are at the top of the list in the American Transportation Research Institute's Critical Issues in the Trucking Indus- try – 2015, the organization's annual ranking of the trucking industry's top 10 concerns. This year, 1,388 respondents representing fleet executives and commercial drivers in the United States and Canada completed the survey. (To view the full report, visit atri-online.org). HOS comes in at number one on ATRI's survey for the third consecutive year. Ac- cording to ATRI, 80 percent of carriers re- ported productivity losses as a direct result of the 2013 HOS rule, which it says also cost drivers an estimated $1.6 billion to $3.9 bil- lion in lost pay. CSA ranks number two on the list, re- placing "Driver Shortage" from last year's survey. Continual changes to a program that was widely regarded as "half-baked" at launch require carriers to stay abreast of re- visions and constantly adapt their safety and maintenance practices. Crash accountability and SFD updates that were long-promised by FMCSA haven't happened yet, adding to carriers' worries with the program. The bad news? Unless government agen- cies can right the ship and address concerns about CSA and HOS by the trucking indus- try and Congress in the next several months (something not likely to happen), I expect we'll see these issues atop ATRI's list in 2016 and perhaps beyond. The good news? "The Economy" isn't expected to be anywhere close to the top of the list in the near future. upfront Annual ATRI survey puts HOS, CSA at the top of industry's worry list BY JEFF CRISSEY What ails you? JEFF CRISSEY is Editor of Commercial Carrier Journal. E-mail jcrissey@ccjmagazine.com. Our condolences CCJ is sad to report the Oct. 25 passing of Robert (Bob) Baylor, president of Milan, Ind.-based Baylor Trucking. A past chair- man of the Indiana Motor Truck As- sociation, Baylor also was a leader and vocal advocate for the trucking industry, actively serving on com- mittees for the American Trucking Associations and the Truckload Carri- ers Association. He also played a vital role in the Wreaths Across America organization. Baylor is sur- vived by his wife, Beth, and two daughters, Cari Baylor and Kelly Baylor Shelton. Memorials may be made to Shriner's Children Hospital or ALS Therapy Develop- ment Institute (www.alstdi.org), care of Bob Baylor Family Memorial. ATRI's Top 10 Industry Concerns (Industry Concern Index in parentheses) 1. Hours-of-Service (100) 2. Compliance Safety Accountability (CSA) (91.6) 3. Driver Shortage (89.6) 4. Driver Retention (71.1) 5. Truck Parking (61.0) 6. Electronic Logging Device Mandate (55.4) 7. Driver Health/Wellness (39.5) 8. The Economy (37.8) 9. Transportation/Infrastructure/ Congestion/Funding (37.2) 10. Driver Distraction (32.9)