Overdrive Magazine | Trucking Business News & Owner Operator Info
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42 | Overdrive | September 2014 close scrutiny No. 2: Pennsylvania Haulers on a D.C.-to-Pittsburgh ded- icated turn might be the most inspec- tion-prone haulers in the country, never leaving the No. 1 and No. 2 states in Overdrive's inspection-intensity rankings. Good news is, as noted, Maryland's above average for the ease of improving CSA scores with clean inspections, and crossing into neighboring Pennsylvania puts you in a top 10 state for that metric. At No. 9 in Overdrive's list of the states with the largest percentages of clean inspections, Pennsylvania's 51 percent clean rate in 2013 was much better than the national average. Pennsylva- nia is also favorable in violations per inspection. Nationally, 1.6 violations per inspection were recorded in 2013; for Pennsylvania and Maryland, that number was 1.3. Clean inspections in Pennsylvania have risen nearly 20 percent since 2011. Cpl. Rick Koontz, supervisor of Pennsylvania's Commercial Vehicle Safety Division, says that's "a direct result of the DataQs system." The state processed "about 3,000" challenges to violations on inspection reports last year alone. "We hold our guys very ac- countable," Koontz says. "If somebody DataQs something, we take that very seriously. We do a quality check of the entire report." As Overdrive reported in August in the "Inspections" chapter in this series, Pennsylvania, like Maryland and other states, has been on the move with mobile traffic enforcement and associated credentials-type inspections focusing on moving violations. Unlike Maryland and other weigh-station-heavy states, Penn- sylvania's always been strong on mobile enforcement. One reason is there's only one permanent scale house – in Clarion County, says Koontz, "in the middle of nowhere, 200 miles from Harrisburg," the state capitol. Otherwise, "we have 37 teams that move around in vans and carry scales – generally, one civilian inspector and one trooper." Those vans have been on the move of late. Between 2011 and 2013, Pennsyl- vania's inspection numbers have grown in real terms by nearly 30 percent to 11.4 inspections per lane-mile – growth that is unmatched in most jurisdictions across the country. (At No. 2 today for inspection intensity, Pennsylvania wasn't even in the top 10 in Overdrive's CSA's Data Trail analysis last year.) Part of that boost can be attributed to funding. Between 2012 and 2013, total Motor Carrier Safety Assistance Program monies going to Pennsylvania grew by more than 11 percent, but that doesn't tell the whole story. Prioritization of traffic enforcement among the total 700 inspectors statewide – combined with inspection at roadside, with a greater priority on less-time-consuming credentials inspections – simply means more inspections, Koontz says. Inspections per lane-mile 8.9 10.8 11.4 5.5 5.6 5.6 2011 2012 2013 Pennsylvania National average Percentage of all violations 66% 15% 20% 5% 8% 12% VIOLATION PROFILE: PENNsyLVANIA Source: Unless otherwise noted, all numbers based on 2013 federal data analyzed by RigDig Business Intelligence (rigdig.com/bi). Inspections per lane-mile 1. Maryland: 18.0 2. Pennsylvania: 11.4 3. California: 11.1 4. Texas: 10.3 5. Arizona: 9.1 6. New Mexico: 8.2 7. Missouri: 8.1 8. Georgia: 7.9 9. Indiana: 6.7 10. Nevada: 5.5 INsPECTION INTENsITy's TOP 10 Access interactive maps and downloads for rankings and violation profiles of all 48 continental U.S. states via OverdriveOnline. com/csa. VIolatIonS peR InSpectIon: 1.3 natIonal aVeRage: 1.6 Violation category Maintenance Lights Brakes Tires Moving violations Hours of service National rank No. 22 No. 31 No. 11 No. 31 No. 34 No. 34