Fleet Management News & Business Info | Commercial Carrier Journal
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/538378
LEADING NEWS, TRUCKING MARKET CONDITIONS AND INDUSTRY ANALYSIS A U.S. Department of Transportation funding bill that would retain the hours-of-service restart rollback last month cleared the U.S. House, passing by six votes. The fate of the House's $55 billion 2016 DOT appro- priations bill, however, remains murky. President Obama said he would consider vetoing the legisla- tion if it came to him as is, and the Senate still has not began work on its version of a 2016 DOT appropria- tions bill – which it could put off for several more weeks, if not longer. The Senate's upper chamber also likely will pass its own version of a DOT funding measure, meaning the two chambers would have to work out any differences between the bills and vote on new ones, which could mean changes for the House bill. In addition to continuing the suspension of certain hours-of-service regulations, the House bill bars the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration from con- tinuing work on a rule to increase the minimum amount of liability insurance required by federal law for motor carriers, which the agency began to undertake last year. The legislation also would block investment by FMCSA into wireless roadside inspection technology and permit use of 33-foot double trailers nationwide. The hours-of-service language in the bill says the full 2013-implemented HOS rule could come back into effect only if FMCSA's hours study, currently in the works, shows that drivers who operate under the 2013 rule are less fatigued and operate safer than those who operate under the pre-2013 rule. – James Jaillet T he National Highway Traffic Safety Administration last month published a final rule requiring all trucks made on and after Aug. 1, 2017, to be equipped with electronic sta- bility control systems designed to prevent vehicle rollovers. The mandate is aimed at truck manufacturers, not truck buyers and owners, and applies to "typical three-axle tractors." The mandate only requires stability control systems and not broader active safety systems such as those that brake autonomously. NHTSA's rule was required by the 2012-passed MAP-21 highway funding act, and NHTSA says the rule will prevent between 1,424 and 1,759 crashes a year and between 40 and 49 deaths a year. The systems use braking and steering mechanisms that can deploy quickly enough to help trucks "maintain directional control" and pre- vent crashes. NHTSA says monetary savings on crashes, reduced congestion and damage to property will yield an annual societal benefit that ranges from $3.6 million and $19.2 million. The National Transportation Safety Board last month made a num- ber of additional recommendations intended to help address road safety, such as requiring vehicle manufacturers to install forward col- lision avoidance systems as standard equipment on all new vehicles. NTSB also recommended ithe installation of autonomous emergency braking systems. – James Jaillet Scan the QR code with your smartphone or visit ccjdigital.com/news/subscribe-to-newsletters to sign up for the CCJ Daily Report, a daily e-mail newsletter filled with news, analysis, blogs and market condition articles. COMMERCIAL CARRIER JOURNAL | JULY 2015 11 DOT funding bill passes House, fate remains unclear ESC mandate published, will take effect August 2017 The House bill also bars FMCSA from continuing work on a rule to increase the minimum amount of liability insurance required for motor carriers. Electronic stability control systems use braking and steering mechanisms that can deploy quickly enough to help trucks maintain directional control.