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Safety Remains Strong: Due to the weakening economy and rising fuel prices, some analysts predicted commercial motor vehicle fleets would be forced to focus less on safety in an effort to cut corners. But that’s not been the case. During Roadcheck 2008, inspectors across North America placed the fewest number of commercial trucks out of service since Roadcheck inspections began in 1988. Vehicles underwent level 1 inspections, the most comprehensive roadside inspection, and only 23.9 percent of vehicles were put out of service. “This rate is the principal barometer used to measure compliance and it is the lowest we’ve seen in the 21-year history of Roadcheck,” said Stephen F. Campbell, executive directory of CVSA, a nonprofit group that promotes commercial motor vehicle safety. “It is clear the safety message is being heard and that the increased enforcement presence is making a difference.” In June, more than 9,000 certified inspectors performed 67,931 truck and bus inspections. Some 5.3 percent of drivers were placed out of service, compared to 6.2 percent last year; 20.8 percent of vehicles were placed out of service versus 21.5 percent in 2007. Despite the positive trends, the number of safety belt violations rose significantly from 829 last year to 1,226 this year. Safety belt enforcement is a primary focus each year. However, the main cause of out-of-service vehicles continues to be defective brakes, despite declines in recent years. In 2004, 56.6 percent of vehicles placed out of service had faulty brakes, compared to 52.6 percent this year.
When Tomatoes Go Bad: Two years ago, the outbreak of E. coli in spinach dominated the news. Now the industry is dealing with Salmonella-tainted tomatoes. The FDA recently issued a nationwide warning for consumers to avoid certain types of tomatoes. To date, 277 people in 28 states have been infected with the rare strain of Salmonella, and the source of the outbreak is still unknown. The situation has prompted a lot of concern from sellers, buyers, and truckers. Some owner-operators, for example, have decided not to haul any tomatoes until the source has been identified. According to Land Line Magazine, Gayland Monday of Queens City, Texas, said he couldn’t afford the financial risk of hauling infected tomatoes. In 2006, Monday was hauling pallets of bagged spinach that was eventually rejected at the warehouse due to possible E. colicontamination. Monday finally dumped the spinach in a landfill at his own expense; he was never reimbursed. Since then, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Fruit and Vegetable Programs has addressed the issue of who shoulders the financial responsibility for food that may be contaminated. For information on the new regulations, search online for the summer 2007 issue of the PACA Administrative Newsletter. In sum, it states that financial responsibility falls either to the buyer or shipper. Truckers are not liable for shipments of produce that may be contaminated.
Americans Driving Less: At a time when fuel prices are at record highs, Americans have hit the brakes on driving. Transportation Secretary Mary E. Peters said that Americans drove 1.4 billion fewer highway miles in April 2008 than in April 2007. April is the sixth straight month that highway driving has dropped off. The secretary said the situation highlights the need to find a more sustainable way to fund highway construction and maintenance since fewer fuel taxes are being collected. But on the positive side, she said, “We’re burning less fuel as energy costs change driving patterns, steer people toward more fuel-efficient vehicles, and encourage more to use transit.” Plus, greenhouse gas emissions fell by an estimated 9 million metric tons for the first quarter of the year. The agency has tracked highway vehicle miles traveled since 1942, and the energy crisis of the 1970s was the only other time that driving tapered off. But back then, say highway officials, the drop-off was more like a plateau; this time, the drop-off is more like a cliff. “It is the steepest decline in vehicle miles traveled ever recorded,” said Jim Ray of the Federal Highway Administration. Rural interstate highways had the biggest change: a 5 percent drop in vehicle miles traveled.
Overpass Accidents Rise In Ohio: More trucks traveling in Ohio have been hitting overpasses, according to the Ohio Department of Transportation. Fifteen such accidents have occurred in the last year, costing the agency $1.9 billion in emergency repairs, compared to about $600,000 the previous year. Officials are not sure why overpass accidents are on the rise and can’t say yet whether the increase is a trend or whether other states are experiencing similar rises. Some speculate that increased truck traffic and carrying larger loads in an effort to economize may be factors in the bridge accidents. In Ohio, trucks and their cargo are limited to 13.5 feet (unless they have a special permit). Overpasses usually have a clearance of about 16 feet. Crashes have resulted in damage to bridge supports and to beams, resulting in a lower clearance than before the accident. Transportation officials say bridges are marked with safety signage, but extra warnings have been added after accidents occurred. Some causes, like equipment malfunctions, are out of the driver’s control, but sometimes the driver is at fault (like when lifting devices are left up). Officials say they plan to spend millions of dollars in accident prevention through driver educating. Trucking groups contend that truck operators should be aware of their load heights and weights and be especially careful with equipment that can accidentally be left up or rise in transit.
Does Law Lack Teeth? Washington State recently joined California, New Jersey, Connecticut, New York, and the District of Columbia to make driving while talking on a hand-held cell phone illegal. Washington’s law makes it a secondary offense, meaning that police can issue a ticket only if the driver is stopped for another offense, such as speeding. Drivers are permitted to use a hands-free device for talking. This past year, 22 states considered similar legislation, and Louisiana lawmakers recently sent a bill to the governor’s desk. But traffic-safety advocates say the new laws are inadequate. “Laws like Washington’s probably will have a big effect on making people feel good about passing a law but zero effect on highway safety,” said Russ Rader, a spokesman for the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. The problem is that drivers are still permitted to talk on hands-free devices, and it’s the talking that’s distracting. “If you continue to allow hands-free phoning, you haven’t addressed the safety problem,” Rader said. Other critics of the law point out that New Jersey’s cell phone ban also started out as a secondary offense, making it difficult for state officials to enforce. “It didn’t make any impact at all,” one officer said. This year, New Jersey made the law a primary offense, and the change was immediate. Officers now hand out about 11,600 tickets each month, compared to only 1,500 tickets when the law was a secondary offense. “You’ve got to put some teeth in it if you want people to take it serious,” said the director of the New Jersey division of Highway Traffic Safety.
Full Speed Ahead: A new study found that raising the speed limit from 65 to 70 on an Indiana interstate has not increased the likelihood of severe injuries or fatalities. “These findings are important because the influence of speed limits on roadway safety has been a subject of continuous debate in the state of Indiana and nationwide,” said researcher Fred Mannering. In 2005, a national study reached a similar conclusion, but researchers say the results may be due to safer vehicles and roads. Each year, more than 40,000 Americans are killed and almost 3 million are injured in traffic accidents. For the average American, the odds of dying in a traffic crash are about 1 in 100. In an effort to increase safety and save fuel, the federal government mandated a 55 mph limit on interstate highways in 1974. In the 1980s, the speed was changed to 65 mph and then repealed in 1995 with the states setting limits. Thirty states have since set speed limits up to 70 mph on rural interstates—but not without controversy. One study, for example, found that increasing speed from 55 to 65 mph resulted in about a 3 percent increase in accidents and a 24 percent increase in the probability of the accident proving fatal. But other studies, according to Mannering, suggest that increased speed limits actually save lives by reducing how often drivers speed up and slow down. The civil engineering expert said any increases in speed limits should be considered on a case-by-case basis.
Do-It-Yourself Monitoring: If you want to monitor your company’s reputation, you could pay a consultant big bucks or you could do it yourself. Consultants can be pricey and rarely offer any kind of guarantee. To monitor and manage your own online reputation, consider these simple techniques from Computerworld:
- Perform regular searches. Regularly search the name of your company to see what kind of material is out there.
- Use free tools on the Internet. There are a variety of tools and sites, including BlogPatrol.com and Technorati, that can help you discover what people are saying about your company and who they are.
- Set up alerts. You can set up an alert through Google to notify you when your organization has been mentioned in a blog, in an online forum, or by the media.
- Spread positive news. Make the most of social networking sites, such as YouTube, FaceBook, and MySpace, by creating positive online content about your company.
Nothing is a waste of time if you use the experience wisely.
—Auguste Rodin
