A new safety compliance system, which the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) plans to implement in 2010, would include expanded sources of information to grade driver and carrier safety, according to an etrucker.com report. The agency’s Comprehensive Safety Analysis 2010 (CSA 2010) includes a new Safety Measurement System, intended to replace SafeStat.
Under the current SafeStat system, FMCSA assesses driver and carrier safety based on inspections, and moving and out-of-service violations. The new Safety Measurement System would also include violations from roadside inspections, including log book and equipment violations. The SMS system will also provide for new options for intervention, and broaden the areas for safety evaluation.
Rather than the existing system’s four areas of evaluation, accident, driver, vehicle and management, the new program will attempt to evaluate performance through seven “behavior analysis and safety improvement categories”, (BASIC). Factors will include fatigued and unsafe driving, driver fitness, alcohol/controlled substance, cargo/hazmat, vehicle maintenance and crash indicators.
Under the CSA system, safety investigators will have access to complete driver safety records. A progressive system of interventions will include warning letters, targeted roadside inspections, off-site and on-site investigations, a cooperative plan for safety, and violation notices. Further actions may include notice of claim/settlement agreement and suspension.
More information can be found at www.fmcsa.dot.gov/csa2010.
Source: http://www.etrucker.com/apps/news/article.asp?id=82952
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