In a recent letter to the American Trucking Association, the FMCSA announced that implementing the EOBR mandate was one of its top five priorities for the coming year. Unfortunately for the FMCSA, the EOBR mandate – along with several other FMCSA and ATA-backed initiatives – are being held up by the White House.
Among the other controversial rules that have been waylaid by the White House are the speed limiter mandate and the insurance minimum increase. The speed limiter rule will mandate a one on every large commercial vehicle, preventing speeding and, according to some, putting drivers “in physical danger.” Opponents of the insurance minimum increase claim that it would raise insurance premiums to prohibitively expensive levels, driving small fleets out of business.
Other rules like the Entry Level Driver Training Rule have been in the works for years and are already long, LONG overdue, but according to former FMCSA administrator Annette Sandberg, that’s really no surprise.
“Having been in the administration, I can tell you I think everybody just ignores what Congress says,” she explained.
Sandberg also said that it was unlikely that we will see any movement at all on the awaited rules until Acting FMCSA Administrator Scott Darling is officially confirmed. She even implied that the rules may be used as bargaining chips to help get Darling’s confirmation pushed through.
“We don’t know when the confirmation hearings will be held, but I think that’s clearly in play with some of these regulations and studies.”
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Source: fleetowner, overdrive, todaystrucking, truckinginfo, truckinginfo, gobytrucknews, truckinginfo
Howdy, I am an independent owner operator. One truck, one trailer. The EBOR, Speed limiter and higher insurance requirement are not about safety. They are about control. Am I that much of a threat to the big companies that they have to shut me down? 35 accident free years on the road seems to mean nothing to these people. Oh well, we will figure it out when the time comes. We always do.
Tires ,repair cost Insurance going up and dealing with 4 wheelers on the phone texting now trying to slow us down plus EOBRs ! Just Shoot Me And Put Me Out Of My Misery!
Well we all know who SWIFT is.. one of the slowest fleets in the nation…. yet the number 1 issue they have is speeding…. thru construction sites – school zones and any other place below 62mph…. so limiters do nothing.
On the open road- sure we get passed up- but i will still catch speedy at the next truck stop– or he is in the ditch- all to go 10mph faster
But where the limiters really do suck- is when you are in the rolling mtns where you cant maintain speed… or get the extra boost at the bottom to make it up the next hill– ( yes – you need to know how to drive) i seen many swift trucks and others coming down the mountains with their brakes burning
The politicians need to stay out of trucking- or trucking just needs to shut down and tell them who the boss really is.
I’ve had trucks with and without speed limiters. I can’t stand speed limiters, they slow up traffic behind you when you are trying to pass another speed limited truck, which pisses people off behind you, they reduce your speed and make it difficult to get up hills which burns up fuel. I can tell you for a fact my current truck goes 72 mph (which is the speed I drive down the highways) and my co-workers truck is limited to 65 mph, we both do the same route each day and he uses 2 to 4 gallons a day more fuel than I do, so I believe he is losing his fuel mileage because of the lose of power going up hills, where I cruise right up a hill and never slow down.
SPEED LIMITERS SUCK!!!!!
Every truck mfg will tell you that when the truck leaves the factory it leaves with governor set for optimal fuel performance. Most companies neuter the trucks when they get them and their fuel mileage goes into the toilet, and then they demand that the driver get better fuel mileage. Secondly when you’re in states like Texas on I-10 west of San Antonio the speed limit is 80 o 85 mph. If trucks are cut to run 62 mph they are no longer a transportation vehicle. They are a hazard to the motoring public. Yes 4 wheelers d text and drive. All any driver needs is a 4 wheeler running 90 mph sending a text message then when they look up they realize they are about to eat a mouthful of DOT bumper. Then after all the attorneys get involved they try to blame it on the trucker for driving to slow. Typical…When ever the government gets involved all they ever do is make things worse…LEAVE THE TRUCKING INDUSTRY ALONE!!!!!
Speed limiters and the EOBR are not for safety.I have said that ever since they were talked about going on trucks.
It is for control and control only.
They will not make our highways safer. They in fact create unsafe conditions on our highways making it unsafe for every one we share the road with.
EOBR does cause drivers to push beyond their abilities. Stopping just eats the time on the clock because we cant stop it for safety therefore reducing the pay check that goes to support the family. Since we cannot stop the clock some drivers will push themselves when tired, when not feeling well,and do not stop to eat a decent meal.
We used to be able to stop the clock , take a safety nap, eat a decent meal then continue until we used the days time limits on the logs. We were safer drivers and in better physical health back then. What the hell happened to us? To our industry?
If our all knowing Government really wants safer highways then they should target the unsafe drivers. The drivers in 4 wheelers and pickup trucks. Ticket them for tailgating, passing on the right as you clear the passed truck or car because they are in a hurry. The ones that cut you off after passing to get to that exit 200 feet in front.
however that isn’t going to happen. The drivers of cars and other vehicles do not have deep pockets, They do not have millions dollars worth of insurance to target. It is hard for LEOs to say we want to make our highways safer so we are going to ticket drivers of SUV’s, Pickup trucks,RVs and cars that are breaking the law.That happens on occasion but not targeted except for DUI check points The uproar from these people would be heard far and wide against being targeted for being poor drivers that they are..How dare they target us when truckers are the bad unsafe drivers , Every one know that.
We hear stuff like that all the time from one talking head or another with a title.
Remember Barbara Walters and her 60 minutes diatribe against trucks years ago. We still feel the sting from that woman and her lies..
When the government or any other entity for that matter uses the term safety it’s locked in the brain of the unknowing uneducated as good, no matter how it is used or in what context.. The word safety is a positive word that gives some that warm and fuzzy feeling. Now they have to find a place to put that word. Hey how about Trucks? Their not, so lets make them safe.
Lets take this Speed limiter BS one step further.
LEO’s talk about how speed causes crashes and accidents, How if that truck had slowed down he would not have slid in the ditch or hit that bridge or hit that school bus ad nauseum.
So slow them down. Who the hell are they kidding???
Now who are they going to target? Who are they going to blame for the accidents and carnage because they got what they wanted .Slower trucks, supposedly safer highways. BS . The EOBR will show along with that onboard camera that the driver did nothing wrong, that the phantom 4 wheeler did in fact cut in too close, was speeding, then hit the brakes and caused the accident. Kind of hard to argue with video and electronic information that proves the driver and equipment were in fact legal and safe . Or how are they going to explain away the increase in rear end collisions into the back of slower trucks by people in cars and other light vehicles. Slower trucks are going to be involved in more rear end collisions but I feel they will be more deadly due to the reduced speed of the truck resulting in deadlier crashes.
So what is this slower trucks fiasco going to do with the loss of revenue to the state and local jurisdictions? The small town speed traps ?
Coroners will be busier.
The hammer shyster lawyers that now have almost no one to target for big bucks. Are they actually going to target the unsafe drivers in cars? We will have to see about that. Do they actually have the ability to do that?. Not attack trucks?
Are they going to pull their collective heads out of the sand and target the unsafe texting, drunk driving, poorly trained that have no clue how to drive kind of people that caused this hullabaloo in the first place?
We either stand up and let these news anchors,legislators and other Anti Trucks groups know how we feel and how it is not going to work . If we don’t, it isn’t going to change and we will continue to be the bad guys with deep pockets .
When will we band together, join together and stand together. We are in the hundreds of thousands yet we let a handful overpower us. We need to set a day and simply shut down the industry. The only way to fight a bully is fight back! We have power in numbers. Lets organize and shut this down. Its thought that because we are scattered we cant come together and form as ‘one’. I know differently. It all starts by starts by starting the ‘talk’. I am female but would be more than happy to get this revolution started.
Ther is already a speed limiter on every truck with an electronic engine: it’s called an ECM. All you have to do is plug into it and set the max road speed and max cruise speed. Mission accomplished. Then every time you go thru a scale they’ll want to plug in and see if it’s at 65. Anybody ever hear of Ontario and Quebec?
Has Ontario not lost all its cases in court so far? Last I heard they’re in yet another appeal and not allowed to plug in while its pending? I am only asking as I am not from there and dont really know whats happening.
My company recently went from 70mph trucks to 64mph trucks. My stress levels have tripled due to competing with trucks going 62/63/65 mph. I’m constantly in a pack where you either ride your brakes all day, or you hold the left lane hostage for ten minutes trying to pass two trucks. It’s made my job miserable. Government has proven time and time again that the more it intervenes, the more damage they cause. It’s funny that there’s already a driver shortage, but they wanna knock o/o and small fleets out of business. You’ve gotta have upward mobility in any industry. It’s every company drivers dream to save money, and buy a rig. I know for me, it was never my intention to work for a company for the next 25 years. It’s always been my goal to become a business owner through becoming an 0/0. Leave it up to the government, and the mega-carriers to ruin that goal. Someone needs to find dirt on these lobbyists that represent the large companies. It’s obvious they’re trying to form a monopoly.
The government needs to stay out of trucking. Speed eobr’s and speed limiter’s are going to ruin trucking forcing quilifide drivers out and inexperienced drivers on the road
How about instead of us just complaining all the time, we issue an “Out Of Service” order on the FMCSA for gross neglect of their primary official duty. “The Safety of Federal Motor Carriers” If they are brought to realize they are to be held accountable they will stop listening to those who only seek to exploit us drivers for personal gain.
They’re backing off for now because it would cut into their revenue at a time when all states and institutions of government are broke…It’s all about the money!
Technically the law states that trucks are supposed to travel 5 mph under the limit anyway . My truck is governed at 67mph but the computer makes the adjustment to the speed and I can run up and down hill at the same speed empty or loaded.
They think the highways are slow now. Wait till they have a 5 mile line of trucks waiting for that next big hill to pass a heavy hauler to truly shut down that highway in every state in the nation. Use your voting rights to replace the politicians putting these inexperienced people in charge of your safety drivers.
Just like electronic logs that drivers don’t have to sign and swear to, which companies manipulate and falsify to cheat the drivers and the HOS rules……..GREAT idea, let’s MANDATE them! DUH !!
FMCSA is loaded with stupidity.
“EOBRs, Speed Limiters On Ice – But Not Forever”
I for one, would support Speed Limiters on Ice! No one needs to be driving fast in those conditions. When the ice goes away, we can enact the “Not Forever” part and go back to normal!
#Sarcasm