Stronger Enforcement Would Help Improve Motor Carrier Safety

The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) is an independent agency that works for Congress. The GAO watches over Congress, and investigates how the federal government spends taxpayers dollars. The Comptroller General of the United States is the leader of the GAO, and is appointed to a 15-year term by the U.S. President. The GAO wants to support Congress, while at the same time doing right by the citizens of the United States. They audit, investigate, perform analyses, issue legal decisions and report anything that the government is doing. This is one of their reports.

Every year roughly 100,000 fatal and injury crashes occur in the United States involving large trucks and buses. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) in the U.S. Department of Transportation works to reduce crashes, injuries, and fatalities involving large trucks and buses. FMCSA uses information that is collected on the frequency of approximately 900 different violations of safety regulations discovered during (mainly) roadside inspections to assess motor carriers' compliance with Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations, as well as to evaluate their compliance in comparison with their peers. Through use of this information, FMCSA's Safety Measurement System (SMS) identifies carriers to receive its available interventions in order to reduce the risk of crashes across all carriers. Improving Motor Carrier Safety Measurement examines the effectiveness of the use of the percentile ranks produced by SMS for identifying high-risk carriers, and if not, what alternatives might be preferred. In addition, this report evaluates the accuracy and sufficiency of the data used by SMS, to assess whether other approaches to identifying unsafe carriers would identify high-risk carriers more effectively, and to reflect on how members of the public use the SMS and what effect making the SMS information public has had on reducing crashes.

The need to understand and follow applicable government regulations is critical to providing safety for everyone affected by the transportation industry. Motor Carrier Safety simplifies the many complexities of legal compliance for the transportation of goods by highway. It provides you with the tools and focus required to achieve full regulatory compliance. The author examines current regulations to determine what issues and requirements pertain to such issues as hazardous materials, drugs and alcohol, employee safety and health. Bulleted lists present the regulations in a clear, easy-to-use format. You will understand the issues and be able to determine the specific regulations that affect your place of business. In addition to regulations and standards, this book covers points of training, record keeping, and suggestions for annual audits. Case studies relating to various regulations help you realize how either violating or complying will impact your business. These features combine to make Motor Carrier Safety the perfect vehicle for launching your in-house training program. The laws governing the transportation of goods by truck vary from agency to agency. Motor Carrier Safety makes clear the regulations and provides the you with a practical source for complying with them. This book helps you to understand your regulatory exposure for non-compliance and guides you through the steps to becoming compliant.