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Mar 9, 2011

CONTROLS * Australia - Speedy solution sought

(Picture by Cathy Adams - Reg Mills, from Mills Transport in Lismore, is backing calls from the trucking industry for point-to-point speed cameras in NSW to aplly to all drivers, not just truckies)

Lismore,NSW,Australia -The Northern Star, by Ava Benny-Morrison -3 March 2011: -- Truck operators are calling for a fairer go from the next State Government... More than 100,000 cars were caught speeding by point-to-point speed cameras in NSW during nine months last year... However, the drivers never received a fine or lost demerit points as the speed cameras are used specifically for trucks... The nation's peak trucking body, the Australian Trucking Association, is now asking NSW political parties to commit to making point-to-point speed cameras applicable to all vehicles... Reg Mills, of Lismore-based trucking giant Mills Transport, said truck drivers felt hard done by... Mr Mills said that if the same speed limits applied to all vehicles, so should the consequences for breaching them... Like many responsible trucking companies, Mills's monitors its drivers' behaviour through a GPS system... The driver management program shows what speed each driver is travelling on different roads across the State and when drivers take their mandatory breaks... If a driver was found to be speeding excessively over a long period of time, they were dealt with by management, Mr Mills said...

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Apr 3, 2009

Get the Feeling You're Being Watched? * USA - If You're Driving, You Just Might Be

Traffic cameras are becoming more common across the country, and not just for catching red-light runners

New York,NY,USA -The Wall Street Journal, by William M. Bulkeley -27 March 2009: -- ... Cameras today are also being used to watching highways to catch speeders, and infrared technology is being used to read license plates in order to catch people who are avoiding taxes and tickets... States and municipalities say that better safety, and some welcome additional revenue, are benefits of the cameras, although critics say cameras can lead to more rear-end crashes because of drivers slamming on their breaks when they see signs warning of cameras. There are also people concerned about cameras being operated by for-profit companies; for example, Arizona electrical engineer Ryan Denke, who runs the Web site Photoradarscam.com, argues that "We're putting law enforcement in the hands of third parties."... Meanwhile, some entrepreneurs are marketing products intended to defeat the cameras by reflecting their flashes back at them; these include Phantom Plate Inc., which sells Photoblocker spray and the plastic Photoshield skin, both of which were recently outlawed in California... (Photo from Associated Press - Vehicles drive past a speed surveillance and ticketing camera on a road heading into downtown in Cleveland, Ohio, earlier this month. The cameras measure the speed of passing motorists and make a photo of the car's license plate so the city can mail a speeding ticket to the offending driver)

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Nov 18, 2008

CONTAINERS' CONTROLS * USA - The sound of smuggling

But what has proved a boon to the global economy has also provided a great opportunity for smugglers, drug traffickers and terrorists

Chichester,England,UK - Detectors/Separations Now -17 Nov 2008: -- ... Around 18 million cargo containers are transported around the world each year and only a small fraction of those (around 4% in the US) tend to be checked when they arrive at a port. So contraband such as drugs, firearms and explosives hidden in cargo containers currently have a good chance of remaining undiscovered by the authorities... Now, however, a new portable option is available, which should allow a greater proportion of containers to be tested. Developed by Edward Staples from the US measurement technology company Q&A Solutions and Shekar Viswanathan from the National University in San Diego, this new option takes advantage of a phenomenon known as surface acoustic waves (SAWs)... As their name suggests, SAWs are sound waves that travel along the surface of a material. First discovered back in 1885, SAWs have subsequently been employed in electronic circuits, where the propagation of these waves forms the basis for filters, oscillators and transformers... Testing this GC-SAW system on samples of cocaine hidden in a cargo container, Staples and Viswanathan found that their system could detect characteristic chemical markers for this drug in around 20 seconds at concentrations as low as parts per trillion. According to Viswanathan, this system is now being employed by government agencies in several countries around the world, including the US...

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May 5, 2008

CONTROLS * Canada - 6000 trucks a year fail . . .

... that's how many transport vehicles are ordered off the road in B.C. immediately upon safety inspection

Vancouver,BC,Canada -The Province, by Ethan Baron -May 04, 2008: -- About 6,000 transport trucks a year in B.C. are ordered off the road immediately upon safety inspection, government figures obtained by The Province reveal... And B.C.'s Transportation Ministry is still considering "truck jail" for the worst offenders... Each year, provincial commercial-vehicle inspectors check 20,000 to 25,000 trucks at roadside in targeted and random stops. Some 6,000 are ordered to proceed no farther because of problems with lights, brakes, tires, load security and drivers... Last year, provincial road-safety inspectors ordered 6,511 trucks out of service, about 700 more than in 2006. In 2005, the number was 6,025... Provincial regulations require truck drivers to check tires, wheels, brakes, lights, steering, wipers, horn and load security before each trip... (Photograph by Jason Payne/The Province - 'The owners of those trucks are not fearful of being apprehended, and similarly they're not fearful of the consequences,' says Paul Landry of the B.C. Trucking Association)

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Nov 3, 2007

CONTROLS * USA - TWIC enrollment begins at second U.S. port

The port of Corpus Christi in Texas this week became the second U.S. port to begin enrolling truckers and others in the Transportation Worker Identification Credential program

Corpus Christi ,TX,USA -Land Line Magazine -November 02, 2007: -- On Thursday, Nov. 1, enrollment was opened for approximately 6,000 workers at the port. The program will issue each worker a biometric identification card that must be presented to gain access to the port... The Port of Wilmington in Delaware was the first port to begin enrollment in the program back in mid-October... The Transportation Security Administration expects to roll the program out at 147 ports during the rest of 2007 and into 2008... (Photo by view images: Dock Worker)

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Aug 16, 2007

Back Roads * USA - Checked for overweight trucks

N.C. troopers seek those who may try to avoid weigh stations on I-85

Hillsborough ,NC,USA -Associated Press/The Charlotte Observer (Charlotte,NC) -16 Ago 2007: -- Truck drivers who hope to skip interstate weigh stations may find themselves foiled by a cadre of state troopers patrolling the back roads... More than 30 troopers fanned out near Hillsborough and Graham on Tuesday, scanning alternate routes for Interstate 85 to see whether big-rig drivers are using the roads to avoid scales on the interstate... Massive trucks are blamed for a major part of the wear and tear on the state's highways, so the state imposes weight restrictions that are checked periodically at stations along the interstates... (Photo by bloomfieldtwp.org: Motor Carrier Enforcement)

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Jul 21, 2007

* USA - FMCSA targeting high-risk carriers

In testimony before the House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Highways and Transit last week, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Admin. (FMCSA) Administrator John Hill reported on the agency’s progress in improving commercial vehicle safety as well as new efforts in this area

USA -Fleet Owner, by Marilyn Wilson -Jul 17, 2007: -- ... According to Hill, the number of compliance reviews (CR) conducted in 2006 increased by 33% over 2004, resulting in 4,195 enforcement actions... In addition, in 2005 the number of roadside inspections of vehicles operated by carriers identified as high risk increased by 9% over the previous year, placing 220,000 drivers out of service and removing 547,000 vehicles from the road...

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Jun 15, 2007

Inspections * USA - Trucks on busy roads targeted for

Faulty brakes. Broken signals. Overweight cargo. Missing signs that chemicals are on board

Fort Worth,TX,USA -The Fort Worth Star Telegram, by ELIZABETH CAMPBELL -June 14, 2007: -- ... Those were just a few of the violations that Texas Department of Public Safety officials found during a recent operation targeting tractor-trailers on a busy stretch of Texas 171 in Johnson County... During a three-day period last week, DPS troopers pulled 48 rigs out of service for violations, after inspecting 116 on Texas 171 between Godley and Cresson. In all, 325 tickets or warnings were written... (Photo by RON T. ENNIS/The STAR-TELEGRAM - Senior Trooper Robert Gaines of the Texas Department of Public Safety inspects a rock hauler on Texas 171)

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Jun 13, 2007

CONTROLS * USA - Tri-State Troopers Keep Eye On Trucks Tuesday

Six States Participate In 24-Hour Enforcement Blitz

Columbus,OH,USA -wlwt -June 12, 2007: -- Troopers across the Tri-State are giving special attention to truck safety on Tuesday... In a 24-hour special enforcement effort, troopers are watching out for truck drivers who are speeding, driving carelessly or are operating vehicles that are oversize or overweight... Troopers are also checking that drivers are qualified and aren't spending too many hours on the road... The crackdown also is being observed in Kentucky, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois and Missouri... The Ohio State Highway Patrol said through May of this year, Ohio has seen 62 deaths from crashes involving trucks... Officials said one in five fatal wrecks is the fault of the truck driver...

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Vehicle Inspection Stations * Canada - New system allows trucks to bypass they

Leduc,Alberta,Canada -Truck News, by Steven Macleod -12 June 2007: -- Safer highways and smoother movement of transport cargo are the goals of a new partnership between the Alberta government and transport companies in the province... Commercial carriers with exemplary safety records can save time and money, by utilizing an automated system that allows them to bypass Alberta’s vehicle inspection stations... Transportation firms participating in the Partners In Compliance (PIC) program are fitted with an automated vehicle identification system that identifies the carrier and issues bypass signals as they travel past Alberta’s vehicle inspections stations.

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Jun 5, 2007

Inspections *- USA - Length limits

Albany,OR,USA -The Albany Democrat-Herald, by Carrie Petersen -2 June 2007: -- Trucks of all kinds rolled into the weigh station on Highway 20 east of Sweet Home on Friday for safety inspections conducted by the Oregon State Police and Oregon Department of Transportation... OSP troopers were looking specifically for trucks that were in violation of Highway 20 length restrictions... (Photo by David Patton/Democrat-Herald - Oregon State Police Senior Trooper Scott Hite inspects a log truck Friday afternoon at the weigh station on Highway 20 near Foster Lake. At top, Sgt. Craig Flierl, left, and Senior Trooper Huff Meyr inspect a truck hauling a bulldozer)

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May 19, 2007

* Canada - Delta mayor wants list of shame for owners of unsafe trucks

... "the worst-offending truck owners should be publicly identified...

Vancouver,BC,CAN -The Vancouver Sun, by Doug Ward & Kelly Sinoski -May 18, 2007: -- Public safety is threatened by unsafe trucks travelling through Delta, says Mayor Louis Jackson, adding that the worst-offending truck owners should be publicly identified... "It's very concerning," Jackson said Thursday about a recent Delta Police Department inspection blitz that found 41 per cent of trucks violate road safety standards -- about double last year's national average... The police and other agencies conducted 613 inspections and two out of five trucks were ordered towed off the road for a variety of road safety violations, ranging from bald tires, broken axles, poor brakes and for carrying more than the allowed weight... (W J Andy's Public Photo Gallery: Looking East, long hill down to Green River UT I-70)

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May 18, 2007

Inspection * USA - 75 Percent of Commercial Trucks failing ODOT one

Twelve drivers were placed out of service for violations such as logbook deficiencies or driving too many hours without rest breaks...
Cascada Locks,OR,USA -The Salem-News.com -May 17, 2007: -- More than 75 percent of commercial vehicles inspected by Oregon Department of Transportation Motor Carrier enforcement officers during a six-hour inspection blitz Wednesday morning were placed out of service with safety violations... Officers completed 55 inspections during the half-day event at the Cascade Locks and Wyeth weigh stations along Interstate 84 in the Columbia Gorge; 42 vehicles (76 percent) were placed out of service for mechanical violations such as improper tire inflation, tire tread problems and other safety hazards... Twelve drivers were placed out of service for violations such as logbook deficiencies or driving too many hours without rest breaks...
(Photo ODOT: Out of service trucks line the parking lot of the Cascade Locks Port of Entry.)

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May 14, 2007

CONTROLS

* UK - Tesco Renews Logistics Partnership With Isotrak
London,UK -TNN -14 May 2007: -- Tesco has selected Isotrak's new Active Transport Management system to boost the cost effectiveness and environmental performance of its delivery fleet - one of the UK's largest freight distribution networks... Active Transport Management is a unique hosted service, based on real-time vehicle tracking, operated to stringent service levels within world-class data centres... With Active Transport Management, users require only a standard PC web browser to interact with the system at all levels - a departure from traditional fleet management systems implemented as discrete hardware/software installations on a location by location basis...

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May 10, 2007

CONTROLS * USA - Big Trucks Busted in Operation STOP

Chattanooga,TN,USA -WTVC, por Richard Simms -May 9, 2007: -- Tennessee Highway Patrol officials say inspections of big trucks statewide during a recent special operation found nearly 600 safety violations and led them to take 66 big rigs off the road... Officers conducted the operation, dubbed Operation United STOP (Strategic Transportation Observation & Prevention), last week at seven sites across Tennessee, including in Marion County. More than 1,600 trucks were inspected. Among them, 329 trucks carrying hazardous materials were checked... Commissioner Mitchell says 596 safety defects were found, 329 trucks were checked by bomb or drug dogs and 760 were checked for radiological contaminants...

* USA - Unsafe Trucks Pulled from Service
Kearney,NE,USA -NTV -9 May 2007: -- How safe are the trucks you share the road with? Troopers pulled dozens from service Wednesday... Surprise inspections keep dangerous trucks off the road, they said... State troopers conducted inspections at six busy intersections in Grand Island. They said the big carriers who travel the interstate are good about complying with all the regulations... During the surprise inspections troopers found 364 violations and pulled 51 out of service. That's nearly a third of the trucks they inspected... (See photo)

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May 9, 2007

Mobile Compliance Device * UK - Catches Out Lying Driver

VOSA's Mobile Compliance Device (MCD) recently displayed the truly vital role it is playing in helping the Agency to identify and prosecute those who choose to break the law
UK -TNN -4 May 2007: -- The MCD, which was developed in conjunction with Atos Origin, is a handheld device that provides VOSA enforcement officers with on-the-spot information about vehicles, operators and drivers that can be instantly updated during a roadside encounter... On the evening of Thursday 26th April, an articulated goods vehicle in the livery of Breen International Logistics Ltd of New Ross Co, Wexford, Eire was weighed at M4 Coldra in South Wales and found to be overloaded on gross vehicle and gross train weight... The following morning, VOSA officers at Michaelwood services on the M5 were conducting checks when an MCD revealed that they had pulled over the same vehicle and that it was still under prohibition... The driver appeared in Bristol Magistrates Court the next morning and received a £650 fine plus costs...

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* W. Australia - Joins national campaign targeting trucks

Australia -ABC Regional Online -8 May 2007: -- Police and other government agencies around Western Australia have launched a month-long crackdown on trucks... All police districts within the state will take part in Austrans, a national blitz on heavy vehicles... In many cases, agencies including Main Roads and WorkSafe will work with police to target problems such as vehicle overloading, drug use and fatigue... Senior Sergeant Greg Yench says the mining boom has put more trucks on WA roads than ever before...

* Canada - More big trucks failing Delta's safety blitz - Police 'shocked,' call for tougher rules on pre-trip checks
Vancouver,British Columbia,Canada -The Vancouver Province (subscription), by Brian Lewis -May 08, 2007: -- One of the annual rites of spring in Delta is a three-day commercial-truck-safety blitz where many of the more than 3,500 big rigs that roll through the community daily are pulled over by local police and checked... Last year, Delta police inspected 544 trucks and found that a disappointing 28 per cent did not meet basic safety standards... Since the national safety-violation rate is 20 per cent, this above-average result received a fair amount of negative publicity and pledges from the trucking and port sectors that there would be safety improvements...

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Apr 23, 2007

Unsafe trucks * Canada - Caught by safety sweep

Surrey,British Columbia,Canada -The Leader, by Dan Ferguson -Apr 20, 2007: -- As the tractor-trailer pulled into the roadside safety inspection stop at the Highway 91 pullout, its leaky brake lines caught fire... The truck was spotted Tuesday by police helicopter Air One and intercepted by a ground patrol when it tried to avoid the safety inspection south of the Alex Fraser Bridge by taking a back road... The badly maintained rig was one of 73 commercial vehicles out of 153 that failed to pass a surprise inspection on day one of a three-day blitz by police and provincial ministry of transport inspectors in North and South Delta... Some of the safety violations uncovered were minor, like burned-out bulbs in brake lights. Others were far more serious, with some trucks having as many as four non-functioning brakes (on a six-axle unit)... (Picture: Commercial vehicle safety and enforcement officer Leo Belanger checks a truck on Highway 91 Wednesday afternoon as part of an integrated road check program)

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Apr 20, 2007

CONTROLS * USA - New e-manifest mandates for Mexican border

USA -eTrucker, by Jill Dunn -April 19, 2007: -- Trucks entering the United States from Mexico though all land border ports in California, New Mexico and Texas must transmit cargo information electronically through U.S. Customs and Border Protection... The agency will practice soft enforcement the first 60 days, with compliance notices to carriers that arrive without submitting or attempting to submit an e-manifest beforehand. During this time, agents will use limited enforcement discretion... After the first 60 days, carriers that don’t file electronically can be refused entrance into the United States or receive penalties of up to $10,000 for violation of the Trade Act of 2002...

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Apr 19, 2007

CONTROLS * USA - Truckers Crossing Border Must Send Data

Truckers crossing the Mexico-U.S. border into California, New Mexico and Texas will be required to send electronically information about their cargo to customs officials effective Thursday

Washington,DC,USA -Houston Chronicle (Houston,TX) -18 April 2007: -- U.S. Customs and Border Protection, part of the Department of Homeland Security, said Wednesday truckers will be required to submit cargo information through the agency's electronic truck manifest system... Those electronic manifests were already required, effective in January, for Arizona, six Canadian border crossings in North Dakota and all of Washington state, according to the customs agency... The electronic records are designed to give customs officers the ability to perform early screening on trucks and provide more time to inspect suspicious cargo...

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