Overdrive Magazine | Trucking Business News & Owner Operator Info
Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/734262
16 | Overdrive | October 2016 Logbook Darrell Ward, one of the stars of the History Channel's hit reality show "Ice Road Truckers," died Aug. 28 when the small plane in which he was a passenger crashed in rural Montana. Ward, who was 52, was returning home after meeting fans at the Great American Trucking Show in Dallas. At press time, the National Trans- portation Safety Board was still in- vestigating the cause of the accident. The crash occurred near Interstate 90 east of Missoula near the Rock Creek Airport. Ward joined the cast of "Ice Road Truckers" in Season Six. He and fel- low ice road driver Lisa Kelly became business partners in Season Nine. – Overdrive Staff 'IRT' star killed in plane crash Darrell Ward from History Channel's "Ice Road Truckers." CRST Expedited was granted an exemption to allow its commercial learner's permit holders to drive in team operations without a CDL hold- er in the front seat at all times. The exemption is based on a tech- nicality in which the learner's permit holder has passed all tests required to receive a CDL but has not yet traveled through his or her license-issuing state to complete the process of obtaining the CDL. C.R. England was granted the same exemption in June 2015. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration said in its Federal Register notice that a learner's permit holder with documentation that he or she passed the CDL skills test can drive a truck for CRST without a CDL holder in the front seat. "The exemption enables CLP holders to drive as part of a team and have the same regulatory flexibility as CRST team drivers with CDLs," FMCSA said in its notice. The exemp- tion is effective for two years following its Sept. 23 publication. CRST applied for the exemption in January and stated it would "allow a CLP holder to participate in a reve- nue-producing trip back to his or her state of domicile" to get the CDL. FMCSA said several trucking groups opposed the exemption, including the Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association and International Brotherhood of Teamsters. Despite the opposition, which was based around a learner's permit holder lacking experience and oper- ating safer with a CDL holder in the front seat, FMCSA said that as long as the permit holder has passed the CDL skills test, the driver is eligible to receive a CDL. – Matt Cole CRST gets exemption for pre-CDL drivers FMCSA said that a permit holder who has passed the CDL skills test is qualified and eligible to receive a CDL. THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION on Sept. 20 issued a regulatory framework for vehicle manufacturers, state regulators and others regarding autonomous trucks and cars. The proposed policy initiative comes as traditional vehicle producers and technology giants get closer to readying self-driv- ing vehicles for public use. THE OUTCOME of the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association's appeal of the electronic logging device mandate was uncertain at press time. A three-judge panel for the federal 7th Circuit Court of Appeals heard oral arguments in the lawsuit Sept. 13. Court rul- ings can be delayed for weeks or months. OOIDA argues the mandate, slated to take effect Dec. 18, 2017, violates truckers' Constitutional rights to privacy. FUEL TRANSPORTERS IN SIX STATES were exempt from hours of service regulations last month to avoid supply disruptions after a Colonial Pipeline fuel line leak caused hundreds of thousands of gallons of gas- oline to flood remote parts of Alabama. A CARGO THEFT WARNING was issued for the greater Los Angeles area because of increased activity. Freight- Watch International said it had seen nearly double the national average for thefts of electronics, clothing and shoes, while it has seen the occurrence of reported fictitious pickups at nearly three times greater than the rest of the United States. The average loss value in the area was 32 percent higher than the national average, FreightWatch said.