FMCSA Releases Final Hours-of-Service Rule
January 03, 2012
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) announced last month that it is retaining the 11-hour driving time limit. However, the agency imposed restrictions on the use of the 34-hour restart – to include two consecutive nighttime periods from 1 to 5 a.m. - and restricted consecutive hours of driving by including a required rest break. The FMCSA has provided a lengthy transition period until July 13, 2013 for most but not all of its changes.
For more detailed information on the final ruling, click here.
By "Move Ahead" Staff
[Read more...]
Show less
Connecting with Community
Compliance Safety Accountability (
The BASICS are made up of seven areas, with fleets receiving a score for each. They include unsafe driving; fatigued driving; driver fitness; alcohol/drugs; vehicle maintenance; cargo securement; and crash history.
Violations found at roadside carry different weights. Knowing the values associated with specific components may help carriers identify areas they want to focus on during pre-trip inspections. For example, flat tires and/or audible air leaks are weighted as an eight, stop lamp violations a six and excessive oil leaks a three. 
What’s more, cargo theft rates increase an average of 28 percent over long weekends and holidays, which can cause long delays for drivers attempting to deliver loads. Carriers should be especially vigilant over the Thanksgiving holiday, which typically has a high theft rate, Burges said.
Penske has been named to G.I. Jobs magazine’s 
“The industry is changing so fast we have to keep pace with these changes,” said technical training board member Ed Glaessmann (pictured right), a high-level technician in Pennsylvania. Glaessmann, paired with Robert Anthony (now a Pa. maintenance supervisor), won back-to-back titles at Penske’s national technical challenge event, a competition designed to test preventive maintenance knowledge.
Burke has learned more about the training process during his time on the board, and is looking forward to helping ensure “that we’re lining up our training with the changing needs of our businesses.”
The availability of qualified truck drivers is always a long-term industry concern, but rebounding freight volumes in 2010 have brought the driver shortage issue back to the forefront and numbers continue to rise. 
NPTC reported that private fleet owners report retention and turnover rates that are better than their for-hire peers. NPTC members report turnover of 10.6 percent, which is up slightly from the 10 percent reported last year. 
The IFDA is a trade organization of food service distributors serving operations throughout the U.S., Canada, and other countries. 
The start of the school year brings with it heavier traffic and professional drivers will want to be even more aware of their surroundings while navigating residential areas, traveling the interstate and making deliveries at the nation’s big box retailers.
Back-to-school season hits at the same time as big-box retailers are stocking their shelves for school-bound and holiday shoppers alike.