WASHINGTON, D.C. – Truck and bus safety inspectors will be on the job night and day during the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s (CVSA) 72-hour International Roadcheck June 7-9, 2011 checking vehicles and their drivers at inspection sites along major highways across North America. In addition, roving patrols will inspect vehicles and drivers traveling other roadways.
“Commercial motor vehicle (CMV) inspectors work diligently every day to ensure that the commercial vehicles using our highways do so as safely as possible,” said Stephen A. Keppler, CVSA’s executive director. “While a significant majority of vehicle operators are highly responsible, conscientious, and safe; a few in the minority are less so. CMV inspectors provide a vital service to check driver and vehicle safety fitness to help keep our roads safe and clear from preventable crashes, backups, and a needless loss of lives.”
Since its inception in 1988, the roadside
conducted during the annual Roadcheck have numbered over one million, resulting in more than 234 lives saved and 4,293 injuries avoided. It has also provided for the distribution of countless pieces of educational literature and safety events to educate industry and the general public about the importance of safe commercial vehicle operations and the roadside inspection program.
Although actual percentage estimates vary, it is widely acknowledged that driver fatigue is a factor in many commercial truck and bus crashes. For this reason, Federal regulations limit the number of both consecutive and cumulative hours a commercial driver may operate his or her vehicle without an off-duty rest period. Enforcement of these limits (which are currently under revision by the U.S. Dept. of Transportation) is essential to ensuring compliance and combating driver fatigue. With the recent increased attention being made relative to driver hours of service and electronic on-board recorders (EOBRs), Roadcheck will emphasize checking driver logbooks and underscore to drivers the importance of maintaining their logbooks, taking breaks, preventing fatigue, and driving without distractions.
This year, Roadcheck 2011 will include added emphasis on finding carriers of household goods (HHG) who may be operating “under-the-radar” by using improperly marked rental vehicles and/or operating as a property carrier rather than HHG carrier. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has noticed a disproportionate drop in HHG carrier registrations and believes some HHG carriers are commercially moving household goods either in unmarked rental or leased vehicles or in vans/trailers that are marked but with improper authority. As a result, CVSA inspectors will put a sharper focus on this activity and take any necessary enforcement action.
“Expanding this year’s Roadcheck to include household goods movers, along with trucks and buses, reflects our strong commitment to stepping up commercial vehicle safety enforcement and saving lives on our nation’s roadways,” said Anne S. Ferro, administrator for FMCSA. “We want every commercial motor carrier and driver to embrace safety as their number one priority. Roadcheck drives home this lifesaving message.”
As with each annual Roadcheck, passenger carrying vehicles also are included in inspections. In light of recent, highly-publicized fatal bus crashes, CVSA inspectors will continue their emphasis in 2011, to ensure passenger carriers operate safely.
CVSA will hold its international press conference June 7, 2011 in Virginia at the Dumfries Scalehouse on I-95 North (mile marker 152) at 10:00 a.m. which will include speakers from FMCSA and local agencies, safety organizations and industry partners. In addition, the Virginia State Police will be pulling commercial motor vehicles, including unoccupied motor coaches off the Interstate and screening vehicles that need to be inspected.
CVSA is an international not-for-profit organization comprised of local, state, provincial, territorial and federal motor carrier safety officials and industry representatives from the United States, Canada and Mexico. Our mission is to promote commercial motor vehicle safety and security by providing leadership to enforcement, industry and policy makers. In addition, CVSA has several hundred associate members who are committed to helping the Alliance achieve its goals; uniformity, compatibility and reciprocity of commercial vehicle inspections, and enforcement activities throughout North America by individuals dedicated to highway safety and security. For more on CVSA visit www.cvsa.org.
