It's pretty safe to say that no one is happy with the Hours of Service proposal. Neither side likes the fact that FMCSA "waffled" on the driving hours. Reducing driving hours has been a key concern of Public Citizen, the group that's been the main force behind the court challenges.... Read More

This article was originally posted on the Eco-Scientific web site by Paul Kauler, a self-described independent consultant, truck driver, diesel mechanic, avid student of life sciences and cancer research technician.... Read More

On January 8, 2010, veteran Chicago trucker Zygmunt Wiechowski lost control of his truck on a snowy I-70 near Springfield, OH. The truck jacknifed and went across the median, striking a bus. The bus driver and three special needs adults were killed in the crash and others were injured. The Ohio Highway Patrol investigators felt that excessive speed was the cause of the accident and Wiechowski was cited for Failure to Yield and Speeding.... Read More

About a month ago I attended a safety conference for the NPTC. It was a great conference, great speakers, and a great opportunity to see a lot of familiar faces. While attending, I had the opportunity to listen to a DOT representative state categorically that CSA 2010 will not, nor was it ever designed to, put drivers out of a job. WHEW!!! Everybody in the room was visibly relieved that all the scary stuff they'd been hearing was false and that the scoring and violations would NOT create the next big driver shortage.... Read More

At Women In Trucking, we are often asked if women make better drivers than their male counterparts. In many cases, it's men who tell me that they believe women drive "better" than men. This is one subject where I will not voice my opinion!... Read More

For my first blog entry I'd like to share with you a recent article I wrote on how using behavioral assessments can assist carriers in preparing for CSA 2010 by helping them select drivers who are statistically less likely engage in unsafe behavior.

Take a good look... this graph can prepare you for
Comprehensive Safety Analysis 2010
CSA 2010... Read More

Preserving evidence in the event of an accident is crucial to minimizing one's liability exposure. This is Part 5 in a 9 part series of related discussions. The full list of the parts to this series appears following this installment.

Companies typically conduct investigations of accidents in which their equipment is involved, often through a "safety committee". Such investigations frequently include a "preventability" finding in conjunction with the accident. While there are legitimate reasons to conduct such investigations (e.g. the attempt to avoid similar accidents in the future), they should be conducted with their potential impact on related civil litigation in mind.... Read More

To quote the late great Jim Morrison of The Doors, "Keep your eyes on the road and your hands upon the wheel." Maybe Jim was giving us a little insight into our current state, or maybe he was just stating the obvious?

At any rate, most of you are probably aware; the US government has issued a ban on truckers and bus drivers from texting while driving. This has evoked quite a stir in the transportation community and I think the consensus is that it's the right thing to do. When you factor in the risk of potential accidents and the safety of those around you, it certainly becomes an issue that can't (and shouldn't) be ignored. The purpose of the ban is certainly not single out those driving the big rigs, but is instead a broader effort aimed at improving the driving habits of ALL drivers, professional and non-professional. I applaud the government and Secretary Ray LaHood for taking a stance, but I think we should also take a step back and look at how we got here... innovation!... Read More

There are two schools of thought that surface when it comes to reviewing the causes of truck accidents with each school differing on how it defines an "accident". One group defines an accident as multifactor stochastic events (translation: many different things happening randomly all at once). Viewed from this perspective, how is it even possible for fleet managers to conceive of a safety and driver-training program that will consistently and reliably train drivers to prevent accidents?... Read More