Waynes World - January 2008
ONLINE TRAINING COURSES, CARRIERS
GET GUARANTEED PAYMENTS, AND...
NEW IDLING LIMITS
BEGIN IN CALIFORNIA
By Wayne Schooling
NEW CALIFORNIA IDLING LAWS
Beginning January 1, 2008, truckers heading to California will have two new emissions regulations to contend with (and there’s another one on the way in December 2008). As of January 1, truckers won’t be allowed to idle for more than five (5) minutes when parked, and 2008 year engines will be required to have an automatic shutoff. The shutoff function will warn a driver within 30 seconds of shutting off. Also in California, trucks with a diesel-powered Auxiliary Power Unit (APU) attached with a 2007 or newer engine must now have a particulate filter installed on the APU.
Beginning in December 2008 (still a year away), reefers operating in California that have engines from 2001 or before will have to be retrofitted to reduce emissions by 50%. The regulation continually moves up required retrofits on a 7-year, phase-in schedule, with 2002 year reefer units needing retrofits by December 2009, and 2003 units by 2010. A new ultra-low emission standard will begin for engines by 2010. Stay tuned!
SAFETY IS GOOD BUSINESS
Whether you are a new motor carrier just starting out or an established company with years of experience, safety is good for your business. Good safety practices can save lives, reduce injuries, and improve your bottom line. Crashes are devastating in terms of fatalities and injuries, financial costs, damaged reputations, the inability to attract and retain good drivers, and general goodwill in the industry. The average cost of a large truck crash involving a fatality is $3.6 million per crash. The average crash with injuries is almost $200,000 per crash. And finally, the average cost of ALL large truck crashes is about $91,000 per crash. And you wonder why your truck insurance is so high.
So how do you reduce your accidents? How do you find good drivers in a driver shortage period? How you do train the ones that you have? The answer is simple. Have your drivers train at their own convenience, online, where they won’t lose time on the job. New drivers can get the same training to set them apart from others. Trust me, if I had to choose between two drivers and only one had a Certificate of Training from the DOT, I would definitely choose the certificated driver hands down without blinking.
Last year, we at NTA (NorthAmerican Transportation Association) teamed up with Advance Online and the U.S. DOT’s Transportation Safety Institute to bring the trucking industry certificated training courses. We are especially excited and proud to announce that we now have more than doubled the number of online courses (from 45 to 94) on our website. We have added 12 courses on Cargo Securement covering the proper training on: metal coils, concrete pipe, paper rolls, containers, machinery, dressed lumber, logs, large boulders and more. We now have over 40 OSHA courses.
Some of our most recent graduates are Julio Castillo of Westfield, IN; Natasha Sucic & Elvir Melic of VSS Carriers in Ft. Worth, TX; Tony Martinez of TMT in Fontana, CA; Paula Middendorf of Duquendorf Transport in Gibson City, IL; Bruce Jordan of Hotwire Electric in Anchorage, AK; Denise Estepp of Newberry’s Green Forest Products in Green Forest, AR; Chad Golab of InfraSource Transmission Services in Mesa, AZ; Linda Cardoza of Cardoza Trucking in El Paso, TX; and Danny Durham of CarQuest in Raleigh, NC – just to name a few.
It doesn’t matter if you are an owner operator or part of a large company, the only way you are going to get ahead of the game in this industry is to take the applicable US DOT/TSI certificated courses. Trust me, this certificate will get you more money and lower your insurance costs.
Starting this month, for those of you that do not need certificated courses, NTA has developed one of the best online interactive training libraries. The library contains over one hundred 30-45 minute interactive videos on topics like safety, hazmat and regulatory compliance. Many of these courses are available in Spanish, as well as English. The pricing is very attractive – starting as low as $24.95 for the “Low Volume Plan.” We also have a “High Volume Plan” and an “Unlimited Access Plan.” For more details about all of these programs, visit www.ntassoc.com.
NO LICENSES FOR ILLEGAL ALIENS
Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY) introduced a bill that would withhold 10% of federal highway funds from states that issue driver licenses to illegal immigrants. Under the bill, states would have to verify that license applicants are in the United States legally. The bill would redistribute withheld funding to states that are following the law. The day after Barrasso introduced his legislation, New York Gov. Eliot Spitzer (D) dropped his plan to grant driver licenses to illegal immigrants in the state. Also, Rep. Peter King (R-NY) introduced another bill prohibiting states from issuing driver licenses and other forms of valid identification to illegal aliens.
GUARANTEED PAYMENT PLAN FOR CARRIERS
A new Transportation Intermediaries Association program guaranteeing payments to carriers from brokers for up to $100,000 in freight charges is now in operation. Motor carriers who do business with TIA broker members are guaranteed up to $100,000 in freight charges. The guaranteed payment program, two years in the making, provides qualified members with coverage beyond the standard DOT requirement of $10,000. There is no charge for carriers or third-party logistics providers to use the program.
~ NTA remains a name you can trust. Our website (www.ntassoc.com) 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!”