Fleet Management News & Business Info | Commercial Carrier Journal
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commercial carrier journal | january 2018 33 Increasing inspections are back, but reduced violations, more clean inspections and a focus on crash-related behavior add measure of fairness to CSA BY TODD DILLS I n CCJ's annual CSA's Data Trail update, after a few years of decline in the totals overall, RigDig's count of inspections associated with a U.S. Department of Transportation number increased by more than 4 percent. Fortunately for fleets and drivers, those additional thou- sands of inspections can be attributed in part to an influx of inspections that contained no violation. All but eight of the 48 continental United States showed small to marked increases in the percentage of inspections that were clean, which helps a carrier's Compliance Safety Accountability scores. 2016 was the first full year to pass since those scores were pulled behind the curtain from the public by Congress, aer lawmakers got an earful from fleets over issues of data quality, scoring fairness and more. States finally appear to be responding to a long push from both fleets and drivers and, in some senses, regulators and lawmakers to get more jurisdictions to "finish the job" on clean inspections. at means inspectors go through the steps to file a Level 3 driver-credentials inspection, at least, with any quick check that otherwise might not rise to the status of a full Level 1 truck and driver inspection. "ere is a concerted effort among the states to complete inspection reports when no violations are found," says Colin Mooney, executive director of the Commercial Vehicle Safe- ty Alliance. e coalition of law enforcement and trucking concerns oversees the national inspection program's levels, out-of-service criteria and more. "at can be a little subjective in terms – it's not always the case that a report should be generated" aer every stop at the roadside or quick glance through a logbook at a weigh station. All steps required by CVSA's inspection-level defini- tions must be completed to file an official inspection. In 2016, nearly 46 percent of all inspections recorded in the states were totally clean inspections. at number has been growing slowly since 2010, the first year for which CCJ tracked statistics in its CSA's Data Trail series, when the number was just 38 percent. e trend accelerated in 2015 and 2016. If that rate continued through 2017, the next update could well show an overall majority of inspections resulting in no violations. Another reason for the rise in clean inspections also could be fleets' and drivers' increased attention to ticky-tacky compliance points regarding the vehicle, hours of service and other issues. California Highway Patrol Lt. Robert Nance nods to his state's in-use diesel emissions rules as another factor in this trend. "A lot of what we're seeing are newer trucks out there," some bought to comply with the state's tight emissions rules and, being newer, less likely to have mainte- nance-related violations. What he calls "voluntary compliance" also is becoming more common as carriers seek out Level 1 inspections, the most comprehensive truck and driver inspection. Califor- nia, unlike some other states, oen is happy to oblige. Arizona Department of Public Safety Capt. Brian Preston Trucking's longtime call for law enforcement to follow through and complete reports for clean inspections seems to be getting through.