Insure
My RigInsurance For All Your Commercial Trucking Needs. www.InsureMyRig.com. Please contact us today for a no pressure and speedy quote. Contact Us Or call today 888-931-1934 Our decades worth of experience will make your purchase of commercial insurance easier on you!
The Roemer Report On-Line, March 2005
TRUCKING TOPS TRANSPORT MODES: Trucks carry more products by value and weight in the United States than any other form of transportation. According to the Department of Transportation, trucks carry 75 percent of the value of U.S. freight and 66 percent of the weight. The newly released statistics show that trucks moved more than $6.2 trillion and 7.8 billion tons of manufactured goods and raw materials in 2002. By value, the largest commodities transported by trucks included vehicles, electronics, and other electrical equipment. By weight, the largest commodities included sand and gravel, nonmetallic minerals, gasoline, and aviation fuels. DOT also reported that between 1993 and 2002, the amount of freight shipped in the United States grew 20 percent (nearly 12 billion tons), while the value of freight grew 44 percent ($8.4 trillion). States with the highest value of goods shipped included California, Texas, Ohio, and Illinois.
CARRIERS BLAST NEW HAZMAT LAWS: Those applying for a hazmat permit for the first time must now undergo a series of background checks. Applicants will undergo fingerprinting and will be checked for criminal history and valid citizenship. Those with certain criminal backgrounds (espionage, sedition, treason, terrorism, and murder) will automatically be disqualified, while applicants with lesser crimes (kidnapping, assault, rape, extortion, identify fraud, smuggling, bribery, and immigration violations) will be disqualified if their conviction took place within seven years. Applicants who want to transfer or renew their hazmat permit will undergo the background checks starting May 31. Carriers criticize the regulations as being burdensome and expensive (approximately $94 per applicant). Furthermore, argue motor carriers, the regulations threaten to exacerbate the driver shortage. As many as 540,000 of the estimated 2.7 million truckers who hold hazmat endorsement are expected not to renew their permits because of the background checks. Many more potential drivers may be discouraged from applying in the first place. For example, many prisons steer ex-convicts to trucking jobs as part of rehabilitation, according to the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. Trucking companies participating in such programs will be hurt by the loss of employees.
NORTHEAST TOUGH ON IDLING: Authorities in Massachusetts show no mercy when it comes to enforcing anti-idling laws. A motor carrier in North Andover, Massachusetts, was hit with a $45,817 penalty for violating anti-idling laws and has been ordered to install emissions control equipment on most of its trucks. This past summer, New Jersey officials made a 20-county sweep to locate and fine commercial drivers whose diesel-powered trucks idled for more than three minutes at a time. There were 101 violators ticketed, and each was fined $200. Almost half the states in the country have anti-idling laws on the books, and more are expected to adopt them, given the growing concerns over air quality. Houston and some California cities are shoring up existing laws to make them even tougher. Some states like New York have had ant-idling laws in place for almost a decade but are just now beginning to step up enforcement. Most truck owners and drivers admit that their days of idling are numbered. Idling no longer makes much sense, considering the high cost of diesel fuel, the resulting wear and tear on engines, and the availability of auxiliary power units, electric climate systems, and other technologies.
NEW HOS RULES LOOMING: The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has until September 30 to revise the hours-of-service rules, which were introduced in January 2003. The revision will affect the trucking industry for years to come. “This is a rule that is the single most important rule governing how a truck company operates and how a truck driver operates,” said Timothy P. Lynch, president and CEO of the Motor Freight Carriers Association. “For us to go through a three-year period where we have one rule, then we have another rule, and then we have this uncertainty period, and then potentially something else on September 30, that’s a lot to ask for an industry to have to figure out.” Truckers are concerned that the revised rules may have an adverse effect by taking away a driver’s discretion. They say that using their common sense and listening to their bodies is what prevents fatigue-related accidents. Some worry that rigid laws could mean drivers actually get less rest, not more; others are concerned that drivers’ shifts could be shortened, exacerbating problems for an industry plagued by a driver shortage and high fuel and insurance costs. FMCSA says that it is “reviewing and reconsidering” the existing hours-of-service rules and is requesting public comments. The agency is asking carriers to answer these specific questions, among others: How have the current HOS regulations impacted “quality of life” for drivers? Compared to the old HOS rules, have the new rules been beneficial or adverse when it comes to sleep deprivation or other health issues? To what extent does an increase in driving time (10 hours to 11 hours) affect driver health and safety, and economic factors?
PLAYING IT SAFE: At a recent conference, the administrator for the Motor Carrier Safety Administration said the agency wanted to reduce commercial vehicle accidents 41 percent by 2008. Such a worthy, if lofty, goal begs the question: Who will pay for it? Many industry analysts say the key lies in technology that’s affordable. New onboard monitors have recently come on the market, some costing under $400 per vehicle. The systems use onboard sensors and wireless monitoring transmitters to monitor and detect unsafe and inefficient driving behaviors. Safe driving not only saves money in insurance premiums and claims, but also in fuel, tire, and vehicle maintenance. For example, by reducing driver speed from 65 mph to 60 mph, a Class 8 truck would save $19 a day, assuming diesel fuel is $2 per gallon. If a driver is on the road 20 days a month, that’s a monthly savings of $380 in fuel costs. In addition to monitoring driver speed, onboard technology typically monitors tailgating, frequent lane changes, and rapid acceleration/deceleration. According to a federal government finding, there is an estimated 25 percent reduction in the number of truck accidents just by the deterrent effect of a driver knowing that he or she is being monitored. One company vice president said, “By offering an onboard safety solution at a cost of under $400 per vehicle, with little to no communications costs, we firmly believe the system will pay for itself in less than six months.”
SHREDDING SOON THE LAW: If your company doesn’t already shred employees’ personal information, you better get ready to. A law goes into effect June 1 that requires employers of one or more to “destroy” any personal information before throwing it away. Specifically, the law requires the “shredding or burning” or “smashing or wiping” of all paper or computer disks containing personal information “derived from a consumer report” before it is discarded. If you fail to destroy the information, you risk getting fined or even sued by disgruntled employees. The Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act was passed in an effort to crack down on the fastest growing U.S. crime: identity theft. In 2003, about 7 million Americans had their identities stolen, with each victim spending an average of $1,495 and 600 hours getting his or her finances straightened out. If you employ just one person, including a nanny or yard person, and you don’t shred, there are penalties, according to the National Association for Information and Destruction (NAID): (1) State fines. These fines can be up to $1,000 per violation. (2) Federal fines. The federal government may fine up to $2,500 for each violation. (3) Civil liability. Employees may be able to recover actual damages sustained if their identity is stolen due to an employer’s negligence. (4) Class-action lawsuits. If many employees are affected, they may bring class-action suits and get punitive damages from employers.
THE POWER OF WE: Everyone’s been there: You arrive at a crossroads where you face a tough decision. You have few resources and feel depleted and unsure. You can either continue going it alone or you can ask for help. Unfortunately, the choice is not clear for many leaders. Old-style leaders believe they should have all the answers and handle challenges on their own. Certainly, this makes the situation even more difficult. But something else happens here—their people are taught to expect solutions from the top, to wait for directives before taking action. Fortunately, more and more leaders understand that they don’t have to have all the answers. They know that sharing their difficulties is not a sign of weakness but actually an opportunity for the company to grow. They know that open communication fosters trust, builds community, and encourages employees to come up with their own solutions instead of waiting for directives. Judith Glaser, author of Discovering the Power of We, calls these new-style leaders “we-centric leaders.” They know that feeling connected to others, instead of feeling isolated or disconnected, is one of the best motivators for excellence. Glaser cites three dynamics that are keys to succeeding at we-centric leadership: managing your own reactions; putting your ego behind you; and building healthy relationships with others. If you can accomplish these, she says, “You establish a positive context for change by engaging people in an ongoing conversation to develop into the best company ‘we’ can become.”
Vision is the art of seeing things invisible.— Jonathan Swift (1667-1745), satirist