* Teamsters Say Regulators Used Flawed Analysis in Their Zeal to Satisfy Trucking Industry
Washington,DC,USA -PRNewswire/USNewswire -Dec. 19, 2007: -- The Bush administration's reinstated hours-of-service rule meets the economic needs of the trucking industry but not the health and safety needs of truck drivers, a Teamster official told the Senate surface transportation subcommittee on Wednesday... The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) issued an interim final rule last week. The rule, which was twice thrown out by the court, allows truck drivers to work as many as 84 hours a week. The rule is almost identical to the industry's 2003 proposal, Byrd said... Byrd said the FMCSA cherry-picked from studies supporting its position that an 11-hour driving limit did not result in more fatal crashes than the previous limit of 10 hours... The Teamsters reviewed the information provided by FMCSA and found that it does not support the agency's claim... Byrd said FMCSA acknowledged in the past that the risk of a crash doubles from the 8th hour to the 9th hour of driving, and doubles again from the 10th to the 11th hour... The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) first promulgated the hours-of-service rule increasing the number of hours truckers can drive in 2003. The Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit struck down the rule in 2004, but Congress reinstated it as part of the Surface Transportation Extension Act of 2004... FMCSA issued a new Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in January 2005, proposing a rule that was little changed from the 2003 rule that had been struck down... On July 24, the U.S. District Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit for the second time threw out the rule that increased driving time to 11 hours from 10 hours and allowed drivers to go back to work after being off duty for only 34 hours... In the 39-page opinion, Judge Merrick Garland called the rule "arbitrary and capricious"... The International Brotherhood of Teamsters was a party in the case, joining Public Citizen and the Owner-Operator Independent Driver's Association... The deadline for the court's July decision to go into effect was Sept. 14. But legal challenges pushed that deadline back. FMCSA issued the interim final rule on Dec. 11...
* Senator Blasts Trucking-Hours Rule Democratic senator blasted the Bush administration's decision to ignore repeated court orders to reduce truck drivers' hours and said keeping the 11-hour limit is "patently unsafe"Washington,DC,USA -The Houston Chronicle (Houston,TX)/AP, by DAN CATERINICCHIA -Dec. 19, 2007: -- "I think the proposed rule is a sham ... and so do our courts," New Jersey Sen. Frank Lautenberg said at a Senate subcommittee hearing. He was joined by consumer advocates who've sought legal orders to reduce by one hour truckers' daily drive time. "The administration has refused to listen and it's time for Congress to get involved"... The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration last week issued an interim final rule that maintains the current 11-hour driving limit, under which truckers are required to rest for 10 hours. The public has 60 days to comment on the interim final rule... The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in September delayed until Dec. 27 a requirement that would reduce the continuous driving limit to 10 hours with eight hours of rest. The court issued a similar order two years ago... Consumer advocates sued to reduce the amount of time truckers can stay behind the wheel continuously, arguing that longer hours put everyone on the road at risk... Joan Claybrook, president of Public Citizen, told the Senate subcommittee on surface transportation and merchant marine infrastructure, safety and security, that it is "insanity" the government twice ignored court orders... American Trucking Associations President and Chief Executive Bill Graves in October said he expected federal regulators to issue an interim final rule maintaining the 11-hour limit. Dave Osiecki, the trade group's vice president of safety, security and operations, on Wednesday cited the government data as evidence that the rule is effective... To increase safety, Osiecki called for a national maximum speed limit of 65 miles per hour for all vehicles and for trucks to be outfitted with technology that prohibits them from exceeding that limit. ATA members include United Parcel Service Inc., FedEx Corp., JB Hunt Transport Services Inc. and YRC Worldwide... Lautenberg, the subcommittee chairman, said technology in the trucks to enforce the driving-hours limits would help, but FMCSA has yet to require it. FMCSA Administrator John Hill said a proposed rule would require the on-board recorders in a small portion of the trucks, but he wants to expand that population... The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association, which represents more than 158,000 independent truckers nationwide, also supports the 11-hour rule, said member Walter J. Krupski. He asked for more flexibility to ensure drivers are not penalized financially for getting off the road when they are tired during a work day...
Labels: HOS debate
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