Page 22 - ATR 3 2016 web

ATA believes the rule actually makes
THAT WOULD BE NEARLY IMPOSSIBLE OR MAYBE the roads less safe because it puts a lot
of trucks on the road in the morning
EVEN TOTALLY IMPOSSIBLE TO COMPLY WITH A when the roadways are more congested.
PATCHWORK OF LAWS AROUND THE COUNTRY AS Unfortunately, the 2016 law inadver-
IT RELATES TO HOW WE OPERATE OUR COMPANY. tently omitted a sentence saying the old
restart provision would stay in place
pending the study, leaving the law open
—PAT THOMAS, AMERICAN TRUCKING ASSOCIATIONS’ to the misinterpretation that ended the
CHAIRMAN AND SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT FOR STATE restart completely. The ATA is work-
GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS FOR UPS, SPEAKING ABOUT THE ing to correct the error, and Thomas is
CURRENT THREAT TO THE FAAAA PRINCIPLE hopeful for success because Congress
has already expressed a desire to end
the 1-5 a.m. requirement in previous
legislation.
for highways over five years. At an aver- has been a priority for the ATA, which Another priority is clarifying the
age of $45 billion per year, it represents supports the concept of CSA but doesn’t requirement that states not interfere
a $5 billion per year increase over previ- like some of its specifics, including with motor carriers’ rates, routes and
ous funding levels. the fact that it makes no distinction services, a principle that was first stated
Thomas said passage of the bill was between accidents that are the fault of by Congress in the Federal Aviation
one of his priorities as chairman. It fell motor carriers and those caused by oth- Administration Authorization Act
short of the amount needed to really ers. With shippers increasingly using (FAAAA) of 1994. That principle is in
modernize the nation’s roadways, but CSA scores to pick their carriers, it’s danger in California, where motor car-
it includes a modest increase, and state important that the data actually iden- riers are having to abide by that state’s
highway departments badly needed the tify unsafe carriers, Thomas said. meal and rest break requirements as
stability of a long-term bill rather than In addition to the FAST Act, well a requirement that could end the
the succession of short-term funding Congress also passed a series of tax practice of paying drivers by the mile –
mechanisms that previously were being extenders that included an acceler- even when they can make more money
passed by Congress, often on deadline. ated write-off for new equipment – an that way. Thomas said the FAAAA prin-
The FAST Act also includes a $6.3 important provision considering motor ciple is in jeopardy in more than 20
billion National Highway Freight carriers are replacing their fleets after states.
Program and a $4.5 billion grant pro- holding off during the recession. Such a “That would be nearly impossible or
gram meant to improve freight trans- provision is especially helpful to small maybe even totally impossible to comply
port – an important priority for motor carriers, who are the backbone of the with a patchwork of laws around the
carriers. Thomas cited an April 2016 trucking industry. country as it relates to how we operate
report by the American Transportation “While we tend to focus on groups our company,” he said in an interview.
Research Institute that found that high- like ABF or Walmart or FedEx or some In response, the American Trucking
way congestion cost the trucking indus- of the bigger carriers that are more Associations is looking for a congres-
try $49.6 billion in 2014. An estimated noticeable, the reality is that 90-some sional fix and is leading a coalition to
728 million hours of productivity were percent of all carriers have 20 trucks ensure uniformity. It has provided at
lost, which would be equivalent to over or less, so it really is an industry of resource guide at http://trck.ng/f4a that
264,500 commercial drivers sitting idle small businesspeople,” he told Arkansas includes driver testimonials, issue briefs
for a year (See Stat View on page 48). Trucking Report. and social media tools.
The FAST Act also requires Also on the regulatory front,
the Federal Motor Carrier Safety STILL ON THE AGENDA FMSCA passed a final rule requiring all
Administration to commission a The motor carrier industry also motor carriers currently using paper
Transportation Research Board study to has won victories regarding the hours logbooks to use electronic logging devic-
determine how accurately the FMCSA’s of service “restart” provision, though it es by Dec. 18, 2017. Relatedly, FMCSA
CSA Safety Measurement System iden- still has work to do. Legislation passed now prohibits shippers, receivers, inter-
tifies future crash risks. That report in 2015 and 2016 removed the require- mediaries and motor carriers from
must be submitted to Congress within ment that drivers rest two consecu- coercing a driver to continue driving
18 months, with an action plan to cor- tive nights from 1 a.m. until 5 a.m., past his or her hours.
rect deficiencies submitted within the pending a study of whether or not the
following 120 days. Thomas said this rule actually made the roads safer. The 

22 Issue 3 2016 | ARKANSAS TRUCKING REPORT