Waynes World - September 2007

TRUCKERS HAVE ALWAYS BEEN THE EYES & EARS
OF THE ROAD, NOW HERE'S...

YOUR CHANCE TO HELP
PROTECT AMERICA
By Wayne Schooling

Ask yourself what you would do if you saw something that just didn’t look right or if you wanted to report an impaired driver or unsafe road condition? Well, what would you do? Now you can be the eyes and ears of the road as you drive the highways and be a part of Homeland Security for America. Highway Watch® is the highway sector’s National Safety and Security Program that uses the skills, experience and “road smarts” of America’s transportation workers to help protect our infrastructure, the transportation of goods, services and the people.

Highway Watch® is administered by the American Trucking Associations (ATA) under a Cooperative Agreement with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The Highway Watch® coalition engages scores of the highway sector’s leading organizations to train hundreds of thousands of transportation workers throughout the industry. Each state program is coordinated by a locally designated organization, such as my trucking association, the NTA.

Highway Watch® volunteers are trained by security professionals, law enforcement and other expert personnel. Highway Watch® participants are given observational tools and the opportunity to exercise their skills to spot problems like homeland security concerns, stranded vehicles, impaired drivers or unsafe road conditions, and report them rapidly and accurately to the authorities.

The Highway Watch® volunteers, which include transportation infrastructure workers, commercial and public truck and bus drivers and other highway sector professionals, are specially trained to recognize potential safety and security threats, how to avoid becoming a target of terrorists and how to spot a terrorist threat to others. The Highway Watch® effort seeks to prevent terrorists from using large vehicles or hazardous cargoes as weapons and to help protect America’s infrastructures and people. Participants are also reminded to use wireless location and communication technologies properly when reporting safety hazards, unsafe road conditions, accidents and other roadway concerns.

After completing the Highway Watch® training, transportation professionals can use their cellular phones to contact emergency personnel through a special hotline that provides emergency responders with precise location and incident information. A trained operator at the Highway Watch® Call Center verifies the highway professional’s identity (each participant has a unique ID number) and location, and then routes the call to the appropriate law enforcement authorities in that area. Additionally, the Highway Watch® training also instructs all participants to use 911 for life-threatening emergencies.

Highway Watch® participants receive a totally free self-training packet. This training incorporates both safety and security issues. Participants are instructed on what to look for when witnessing traffic accidents and other safety-related situations, and how to make a proper emergency report. The curriculum also provides anti-terrorism information, such as a brief account of modern terrorist attacks from around the world, an outline explaining how terrorist acts are usually carried out and tips on preventing terrorism. Highway Watch® participants are self-motivated and do not seek compensation for participation. They participate because they want to do their part to help keep America safe.

All Highway Watch® participants receive certificates of completion and individual ID cards at the conclusion of the training. As needed, the Highway Watch® hotline sends out alerts to the trained participants. These special alerts may include national security updates, Amber Alerts, and “be on the look out” (BOLO) requests.

In regards to any legal liability, there is new legislation that provides protection for persons who have completed the training. It states that if a Highway Watch® participant reports a situation, report, activity or incident pursuant to the Highway Watch® program, that person shall not be liable for damages in any action brought in a Federal or State court which result from any act or omission, unless the person is proven guilty of gross negligence or willful misconduct.

Recognizing that safety and security concerns on our highways extend beyond just trucking, Highway Watch® is open to any person or organization that works within the roadway transportation industry. Highway Watch® is a voluntary effort that coordinates the skill sets of the transportation sector as a whole. For example: 1) bridge builders know the kinds of activities that should and should not exist at a construction site; 2) school bus drivers, who carry our most precious cargo, know the importance of safety and security and can recognize when something is out of the norm; and 3) if a hazardous materials truck is driving on an unapproved HAZMAT route, this would not appear unusual to most people, but to a trained transportation professional, this would immediately be considered suspect or out of the norm.

Join now and display the Highway Watch® logo on your truck – let terrorists know you are watching. To learn more about how you can take part in this program, call an old friend of mine who I worked with in the Safety Department of the California Trucking Association, Baysul Parker, who is now the State Program Director of the Western Region (California and Nevada). Send him an e-mail to bparker@highwaywatch.com or call (209) 548-9158. Be sure to tell him that Wayne at NTA sent you. You can also visit www.highwaywatch.com for more details.

~ NTA remains a name you can trust. Our website is your official U.S. DOT Internet Training Site and we are administrators of a Nationally Accredited Drug and Alcohol Program. If you have any questions, call me at (562) 279-0557 or send an e-mail to wayne@ntassoc.com. Until next month, “Drive Safe – Drive Smart!”