Driver Fatigue Management Campaign Stirs The Canadian Trucking Alliance (CTA) will team up with Transport Canada to develop a driver fatigue management information campaign to be launched in autumn 2000. CTA hopes to reach drivers and operations management personnel right across Canada with factual and plain language information on operator fatigue and tips on combating it.
According to David Bradley, chief executive officer of the CTA, such an information campaign will help drivers take full advantage of the additional opportunities for rest contained in the proposed new hours-of-service standard.
One of Canada's experts on fatigue and alertness, Dr Ron Heslegrave, will provide technical expertise for the project.
Alliance staff and Transport Canada officials will begin working on the campaign in the coming weeks. Although detailed plans have not been completed, Bradley said efforts will be made to develop partnerships within the industry to ensure the broadest outreach possible. A formal announcement of campaign details will be made later.
Federal Highway Administration Seeks Vehicle Width Comments The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) is requesting comments on proposed criteria for excluding safety- or efficiency-enhancing devices from measurement of vehicle length and width. The advance notice of proposed rulemaking asked what are the safety and enforcement implications of:
- Requiring that certain categories of vehicle components be included in a length or width measurement.
- Allowing a blanket exclusion for other devices extending no more than 3 inches (76 millimeters) beyond the outer dimensions of the components that must be included in length and width measurements.
All previous interpretations related to exclusions from measurements of vehicle length and width would be superseded to the extent they are inconsistent with these regulations.
Comments must be received on or before Nov 16, 2000. Mail or hand-deliver comments to Docket Number 1997-2234, Department of Transportation, Dockets Management Facility, Room PL-401, 400 Seventh St SW, Washington DC 20590; or submit electronically at http://dmses.dot.gov/submit.
The federal proposal that trucks be equipped with onboard computers to track driver movements and truck operations will be discussed during educational sessions at the American Trucking Associations (ATA) Management Conference and Exhibition in San Diego CA.
ATA has said it would go along with a policy that would add accident data recording to truck computers only if the same is mandated for every other vehicle on the road. ATA also wants collected data to be used only to improve safety and for scientific research, not for punitive measures.
ATA president Walter B McCormick Jr is firmly against using onboard computers for enforcement or litigation.
The Truckload Carriers Association (TCA) has presented ATA with a check for $250,000 to help with its campaign against the DOT's proposed hours of service (HOS) regulations. The money is to be used to finance a proposal from ProActive Communications to undertake a grassroots campaign on behalf of ATA that will build state-based coalitions opposing the HOS proposal.