Trucking Regulations add Cost, Danger to Over-the-Road Trucking
Roughly 70 percent of everything you or I use is carried by a semi-tractor trailer to its final destination, so what is the impact of federal regulation on the trucking industry? American Job Creators went out to look and what they found was disturbing, including “safety regulations,” which make the roads more dangerous.
They talked to Western HiWays Safety & Human Resources Director Doug Grove and Operations Manager Kelly Grove.
The federal government regulates commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) to ensure the safety of both the truck driver and the general public sharing the road. Almost everything on or in a typical long-haul truck – which runs about $120,000 each – has a corresponding federal regulation administered by the Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, including special licensing, training, and equipping rules to account for the unique safety challenges of trucking.
“We can’t just jump out there and go with 80,000 pounds [in tow],” said Mr. Grove who drove for 28 years before becoming Western HiWays Safety Director. “You’re going to have tires blowing. You’re talking 120 degrees out in the desert. Heat wears on everything. Electrical, lights, the whole nine yards.”
The need for common-sense safety regulations is clear. State-to-state enforcement of federal rules is not, adding regulatory uncertainty and morepaperwork to the list of obstacles Western HiWays faces in the Obama Economy. On top of the thousands of pages of federal CMV regulations to stay on top of, Mr. Grove said he recently spent two weeks dealing with a paperwork discrepancy between regulatory agencies.
“This is where it’s really messed up because it had to go to Washington to get straightened out,” said Mr.Grove. “That was a hectic two weeks.”
Extra paperwork and the roughly $10,500-per-employee annual compliance cost the average US small business pays aren’t the only regulatory hurdles Western HiWays must overcome in order to compete. Well-intentioned Washington regulations often become, at best, impractical – at worst impossible to follow – when forced upon American job creators.
The Department of Transportation’s Hours of Service regulation, written to prevent accidents caused by driver fatigue, is one example. The rule says CMV drivers may only work 14 hours a day – 11 actually driving – and the driver must keep a logbook of the total hours spent driving and resting. It sounds sensible, but the regulation doesn’t account for the reality of the road.
“You got drivers going into these places to load, and sat eight to ten hours. That’s on the clock,” said Mr. Grove. “If they sit there eight hours, they can only drive three hours. If we didn’t get our mileage in, it don’t matter. Once your 14 hours are up, it’s up.”
Where do CMV drivers rest in order to comply with the Hours of Service regulation?
“Biggest problem nationwide when these drivers go in, they can’t find a place,” said Mr. Grove. “Truck parking across the whole nation has been limited. We can’t park on the road. We can’t park on the ramps. You can’t go to a shop center. They’ll run you out. [No place to rest] is a big safety problem and a lot of people don’t realize it.”
An unintended consequence of the well-intentioned Hours of Service rule is that drivers actually may be more fatigued on the road during the day.
“And with the logging system, you can’t go in the afternoon and take a nap without it counting against your time,” he added. “Before they changed this, you could stop and break your hours up. You could take a nap.”
This is just some of the insanity uncovered by the American Job Creators staff. Read the rest here and watch for more stories on the regulatory burdens imposed by Washington D.C. both on the Tatler and PJM.
Your explanation of the Hours of Service fourteen hour rule are spot on. Many a day I wish I could pull over in my big rig and take a nap, but that works against my 14 hour “day”. If we unload and load in the same day, most often there are few hours left for driving. Weigh Stations and rogue DOT officers give even the most diligent drivers the heebie jeebie’s. Truckers are getting it from all sides and we do important and dangerous work. I just spent over 6500.00 dollars on truck maintainence and tires, and stillould get an out of service for something…out of service is when you are fined, ordered to repair before you can move your truck, which means a roadside call, which means a uge expense. Being an owner operator (small businessman) isn’t for the faint of heart. God Bless America…Never Forget 9/11/2001
I’d love to talk to you about your experiences. If you email the editors your contact info and request it gets to me we can talk.
Patrick –
I’ve got a list of books and articles that will help you gain a deep understanding of trucking and truck drivers. Interesting stuff.
Doug (and Patrick),
Don’t forget IFTA and IRP. I suppose I’m somewhat of a regulatory ‘expert’ since I have the honor of auditing my state’s carriers in those two programs.
Since when did the Constitutional power to regulate interstate commerce extend to micromanaging the daily life of every trucker, as though they were recalcitrant toddlers?
We are paying for this whenever we buy any goods or services that require truck transportation at any point in the production cycle. That includes just about everything.
The first step in solving a problem is identifying the problem.
The problem here is not the 14/11 rule, but the loading/unloading time and the parking. The 14/11 rule is based on extensive sleep deprivation and driving fatigue studies. As someone who has had friends killed by drivers who were fatigued or running double books, I think this is a good rule. I have lost count of the single truck (thank God) accidents I have seen that were caused by fatigued or distracted (texting) truck drivers.
The first real problem here is that independent drivers loose service time to loading and unloading. I do not know enough about the industry to solve this one, so I will pass.
The second real problem is parking. The simple solution is to build more parking. But who will pay? And where will it be built?
This is an excellent article which has recognized problems that many do not want to discuss.
The focus always seems to be directed against the driver when it comes to truck driver fatigue. The general public believes drivers are intentionally driving over their hours without any concern for the safety of others on the highway. Truck driver fatigue is an issue, but many times it is not the fault of the driver, but rather regulations combined with the other obstacles they face daily, such as lack of available truck parking and time wasted at shippers and receivers.
September 8th was another National Call In for Jason’s Law, requesting everyone to call the Transportation Committee (202) 225- 9446 to explain the importance of adding Jason’s law, HR 1803, included in the TRANSPORTATION BILL! Jason’s law will finally address the severe shortage of truck parking which has been confirmed by the FMCSA for over 20 years!
http://www.opencongress.org/bill/111-h2156/blogs/8?sort=newest
What irony! Truck Driver fatigue being addressed by FMCSA with new regulations, and yet the very requirement to ensure drivers are able to comply with the regulations, TRUCK PARKING…is ignored. Catch 22.
We are encouraging all to call the committee so they will include this vital law, HR 1803 in the Transportation Bill.
The issue of available drive time regarding the HOS 14 hr rule is also a topic that needs to be addressed. The fact that there are indeed many hours a driver will “sit” at a loading dock is of huge concern.
When the truck isn’t moving they are not getting paid, period. Drivers many times are not paid retention time for these hours lost.
There is a bill which was introduced by Congressman Peter DeFazio which would allow drivers to be paid retention time.
http://www.opencongress.org/bill/112-h756/show
H.R.756 – To direct the Secretary of Transportation to prescribe standards for the maximum number of hours that an operator of a commercial motor vehicle may be reasonably detained by a shipper or receiver, and for other purposes.
These are just 2 topics which are of great concern to the professional driver, there are many more.
On October 15th in Tunica, MS we will be addressing these and other crucial issues, as drivers and their supporters unite for the First Annual Truck Driving Social Media Convention.
http://www.truckingsocialmedia.com
American and Canadian drivers alike are signed up for the chance to speak in the open forum, directing questions to the panel of experts.
This will be the first time drivers will have an opportunity to unite in order to create positive change and public awareness within the trucking industry.
The time for drivers to speak is now.
Again, thank you for this excellent article.
Allen Smith
AskTheTrucker
Yet another problem with a simple solution. Put a bunch of independent nonunion owner operators with 10 plus years of experience in a room and let them write the regulations. Some might say that is like putting the fox in charge of the hen house, I say it is having people with experience and a track record of good decision making writing the regs. You don’t get a 100K plus loan for a rig, keep your license and insurance, and avoid fines by making bad decisions. I trust truckers to make good trucking laws more than a job for life bureaucrat or a politician who has to pay back a donor.
Well, remember, according to the Feds, the only people qualified to write regulations are fresh college grads with absolutely no experience having to do with whatever they’re regulating. Everyone else is obviously corrupt, in some way, no matter how much they know or how fine their reputation is.
Gee. I wonder why the largest back-scratching collective in the world would think that’s the case. Are they familiar with inherent conflicts of interest? Naw! They work for the government, and are therefore immune to error. Or is it unaccountable to error? I always get those two mixed up.
Oh, well. Let’s run some guns instead.
I’ve been involved with the trucking industry one way or another most of my life. Big Government is running them out of business. My biggest gripe right now is allowing Mexican drivers into the States. Big Government promises English proficiency test, but right NOW there are legals (and illegals) driving here that can’t speak English. And that’s not just drivers from Mexico, it includes drivers from Canada who are originally from Europe who speak a variety of languages. I’ve dealt with drivers who would hand their cell phone to me so I could talk to their spouse in English, then hand the phone back to the driver so she could translate for them. It’s insane out there!
I guess I’m confused. Which new laws did President Obama put into place to hurt the trucking industry, because those college grads who write the regulations must have been doing it for some time? How can he change these laws with the current political climate? Does his American Jobs proposal have any help for the small business owners who are in the trucking industry??