Overdrive Magazine | Trucking Business News & Owner Operator Info
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/619872
Logbook 10 | Overdrive | January 2016 The National Highway Traffic Safety Admin- istration is proposing to require rear impact guards on the back of trailers. NHTSA proposes to adopt Transport Canada's standard for underride guards, which requires the guards to protect car occupants impacting the back of a trailer up to 35 mph. Based on information from the Truck Trailer Manufacturers Asso- ciation, 93 percent of new trailers sold in the United States already comply with these stan- dards, NHTSA says. NHTSA estimates that "one life and three serious injuries would be saved annually by requiring" the under- ride guards. The agency proposes a lead time of two years following publication of the final rule to allow guard and trailer manu- facturers time to comply. NHTSA is accepting comments for 60 days following the proposed rule's Dec. 16 publication in the Federal Register. Go to regulations.gov and search Docket No. NHTSA-2015-0118. – Matt Cole A major government funding bill extends the suspension of certain 2013-implemented hours-of-service regulations and clarifies what evi- dence is required to revive them. President Obama signed the omnibus funding bill into law last month. The stay of enforcement applies to two HOS regulations that took effect July 1, 2013: • The requirement that a 34-hour restart include two 1-5 a.m. periods. • The once-per-week limit of the restart's use. Before those rules can be enforced again, FMCSA would be required by the new legislation to show that drivers operating under the 2013 regulations demonstrate "statisti- cally significant improvement in all outcomes related to safety, operator fatigue, driver health and longevity and work schedules" compared to drivers who abide by pre-July 1, 2013 regulations. Congress directed the stay of enforcement in its 2015 funding pack- age. It also required FMCSA to do a five-month fatigue study, with half the drivers following the 2013 rules and the other half not following them. FMCSA announced in September it had finished the data collection and was set to begin analyzing it. Congress did not state specifically in last year's bill that reimplementa- tion depended on the study's out- come. The new omnibus bill language clarifies that. The spending bill dictates the agency's study must be reviewed by DOT's inspector general before a determination on reimplementing the 2013 restart rules can be made. Also, a provision to allow longer trucks was removed from the omnibus bill. It was not included in the FAST Act highway funding measure passed earlier last month. (See page 22.) – James Jaillet Deal entrenches hold on hours restart NHTSA estimates the cost of adding rear impact guards to a trailer would be $229. Weight would increase 49 pounds. NHTSA seeks to require trailer impact guards PETERBILT enhanced its SmartAir no-idle system with new auto-start technology that helps keep both the main and auxiliary batteries charged while running the air-conditioning system and using electric-powered devices. Auto-start is available as a fac- tory-installed option on Model 579s equipped with SmartAir and either a 72- or 80-inch sleeper. NAVISTAR INTERNATIONAL said it hopes to pay a fine as part of a settlement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that could finalize an investigation by the agency over the departure of former chief executive Dan Ustain and the company's use of exhaust gas recirculation technolo- gy. The SEC is investigating alleged violations of disclosure and transparency of financial statement regulations.