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Terror Threat? - USA - Hazardous-materials trucks
Technology could reduce the risk by a third, but at a cost of $1.1 billion to the industryBoston,MA,USA - The Christian Science Monitor, by Mark Clayton -July 07, 2006: -- The federal government's post-9/11 programs are enough to protect hazmat trucking, say federal officials and trucking organizations... Some security experts say more needs to be done... At issue: Should the government force the industry to spend $1.1 billion - about $5,500 per truck - on new technologies that could reduce the truck-bomb threat by a third?... Every day, some 800,000 hazmat loads hit the road, carrying everything from chlorine and gasoline to liquefied natural gas and radioactive material each year, according to a recent study by the Transportation Security Administration. Nearly 2 in 5 of those shipments are classified as "extreme risk"... Available technologies, however, could prove a major deterrent, says the Transportation Department. Its 2004 study found eight technologies were largely successful, including satellite-based communications, global positioning tracking systems, remote vehicle-disabling devices, and "panic buttons" that send out an instantaneous alert to law enforcement. Biometric identification had some problems but was considered promising... Such a portfolio of technologies could reduce the hijacking threat by about 36 percent, the DOT study concluded. At the same time, the technologies could save the industry an estimated $4.1 billion through improved operating efficiencies, it found... Some truckers say the technology is vital. "I don't know why this technology isn't moving faster into the industry," says Reggie Dupre, president of Dupre Transport, which transports a range of hazardous materials in a 350-truck tanker fleet based in Lafayette, La... During a year-long federal test, one of Dupre's drivers accidentally bumped a "panic button" device. Within minutes, police had the rig surrounded... (Photo: LIAISON/FILE - HAZMAT: This load of radioactive waste in 2001 is one of 800,000 hazardous shipments that hit US roads daily, offering targets for terrorists, some experts say)
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