Werner Enterprises- And The Hits Just Keep Coming

No.

 

Yes, a deaf pilot can also get a waiver to fly

 

For both ears?

I don't think so.

The equal for a CDL is a commercial pilot's license and it is required to have the ability to hear at least in one ear.

This isn't about drivers who have lost hearing in one ear, this is about a driver who has no means of hearing at all, which should not be allowed.

It is a safety thing, and the judgment for the person isn't about safety in this case, it is all about the ADA and discrimination, which goes back to the FMCSA responding to the ATA and megas by allowing waivers to be issued and ignoring the safety aspect of it. The same goes for someone who has very limited mobility, how does one secure loads, managed entry and exit of the cab, and maintain safety in rough conditions.

 

To get a waiver for deafness I’d imagine it would depend on the degree of it. I’m under the understanding that there are 4 degrees. I’m skeptical that they would issue a waiver for absolute, completely deaf in both ears..but who knows..
Safety? They did a study on it and found no evidence of a safety issue.. Am I skeptical..sure.

Fact is Werner has hired deaf drivers in the past but now they won’t and that’s what they admitted to in trial.

There’s little facts released about the case so who am I to judge.. What was his degree of deafness..could just be that he couldn’t hear a forced whisper without a hearing aid.. but who knows. Werner just won a similar case in the same court just recently so I imagine there were differences.

In short, I’d rather be on the road with someone who needs a hearing aid than one who doesn’t speak any English or can read signage..especially in construction zones.

Food for thought.. What’s the worst case scenario of being deaf 100% while driving?
Being able to hear a low air alarm is about all I can think of and there’s an easy solution for that.
Being able to hear sirens? Imo drivers blasting music can’t either.

 

I think we have many deaf drivers on the road . Guys act surprised when I tell them they have a air leak and that’s why their truck pops every 30 seconds lol

 

overall I see your point but what study?

Was it done for commercial trucks or like a lot of them that are cited (fatigue driving), it only has to do with passenger cars?

Not hearing a signal from another driver, like a train horn on my pickup when you cut in front of me or hit another car and don't know about it. There are a lot of scenarios where hearing is part of the job, but it seems this is the only part of the four federally regulated transportation industries that allow the deaf to drive.

 

Here’s the study..details of how this came about.

https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/sites/fmc...g for Hearing Impaired Applicants - FINAL.pdf

I only got to read a little bit but from what I did read.. it started with a completely 100% deaf candidate!

Got to hop a flight to Washington in a couple hours and haven’t slept in two days

 

Well it isn't a study, it is a report and it concluded what I said, they should not be allowed.

The Test Maintenance Subcommittee (TMS) of the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators (AAMVA) authored the report, the subcommittee focuses on the testing of CMV drivers and addresses concerns about testing Deaf applicants.

Here is the conclusion -
After the review and consideration of the information herein, the TMS has concluded and is recommending that hearing impaired/deaf individuals not be exempted from the hearing standards in § 391.41(b)(11).

•  States do not have authority to test these individuals under the existing regulatory language.

 Safety and liability concerns.

Furthermore, they added this - Accommodations that would have to be made to test these drivers create a public/highway safety issue resulting from driver distraction (reading flash ‐cards presented by Examiner; sign language signed by an interpreter clearly take the applicants focus off the driving task). Distraction is cause for concern for all commercial drivers. As to the source of distraction, researchers have found eyes‐off‐road to be a more compelling measure than the nature of the distraction.

By its own admission, the Agency acknowledges there could be potential consequences of a driver being hearing impaired and/or deaf while operating a CMV under some scenarios.

It also confirmed what I claimed, there is no study of accidents or incidents involving deaf drivers and because there isn't one that confirms there is any safety risk with deaf drivers, this lawsuit and the waivers should not be allowed.

This isn't about people's right to drive a truck, it is about the safety to those on the road and more so the increases in litigation brought to the industry by the trial lawyers who see this as easy money with any accident involving a truck, even if the truck isn't remotely at fault - we just saw a settlement of a lawsuit where the truck was on the opposite side of the road and was hit by the car and the truck owner/driver lost the suit.

 

You would think by now Werner would've learned not to let these cases go to a jury....

 

No, he can't. He must be able to communicate with ATC. Deaf people can't do that. The ONLY flight he could take is one not requiring a radio. He would be VERY limited in what he could do. It would also be unsafe since a lot of warnings are audible only, like stall warnings in small airplanes.

That would mean no flight in class A, B, C or D airspace. The only thing left is E and G. Not much there. That would be dangerous since most pilots, even at uncontrolled fields, have a frequency that they use to announce their positions to other pilots. In the industry it's known as the CTAF, or common traffic advisory frequency. This guy would be flying like a ghost, nobody would know where he was or what he was doing.

I can't believe the FAA has approved this. It's asinine.