Waynes World - May 2010
PREPARING FOR THE UPCOMING CSA 2010
SYSTEM, BUT IN THE MEANTIME...
FMCSA DELAYS CSA 2010 IMPLEMENTATION
by Wayne Schooling
If you don’t already know, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) just gave everyone a small reprieve last month, but some of you will still receive an unwanted early Christmas present from them. Full implementation of CSA 2010 will be delayed until 2011. The agency’s original plan was to begin implementing the program in July 2010 and to have all of the states fully functional by December of this year. It now appears that although certain phases of CSA 2010 will begin this fall, full implementation will not be completed until spring or perhaps summer of 2011.
The FMCSA began providing motor carriers with a limited preview of their CSA 2010 data on April 12, 2010. The NTA will provide members with instructions on how to access their data as soon as these details become available. This preview will include carriers’ safety events (roadside inspections and crashes) and resulting violations, but it will NOT reflect the motor carriers’ scores in each of the Behavioral Analysis and Safety Improvement Categories (BASICs).
FMCSA also announced that beginning November 30, 2010, motor carriers and the public will be able to view the complete CSA 2010 Carrier Safety Measurement System (CSMS) data, including scores in each of the BASICs. However, as previously indicated, the public will not be able to view the Crash Indicator scores, because of concerns about the quality of the underlying crash data.
On November 30, 2010, the FMCSA will also begin issuing warning letters to deficient carriers, but will not utilize the full range of CSA 2010 interventions. Instead, FMCSA will use the CSMS (instead of SafeStat) to prioritize motor carriers for standard on-site compliance reviews. So, I suggest that you don’t wait until the last moment to find out where you stand with the FMCSA, whether you are a driver or a motor carrier. Why wait until the fox has already found its way into the hen-house before you buy a gun?
The NTA’s website has all the information that drivers and motor carriers need about CSA 2010 listed under the “Education” tab. Also, in the “Business Tools” area of the site, you can find things like the “CSA 2010 Scorecard” for motor carriers and the “FMCSA Driver Pre-Employment Screening” for the drivers. Myself and the NTA will continue to keep you updated on the implementation of the CSA 2010 program.
A question about CSA 2010 that often comes up is, “What do I do as a driver if I have a bad safety record under the new CSA 2010 system?” Well, I like to equate this to a person in prison. He has been convicted of a crime, has a record, and now has to be rehabilitated to enter back into society. A driver with a bad safety record is in the same boat. You have been convicted of a traffic offense and now have a bad safety record. But, how do you show your motor carrier that you have changed your ways? How do you show them that you have done something to rehabilitate (improve) yourself?
The answer is very simple: you get the proper training. Now let’s face it, you will have to agree that the ultimate best training you can receive can only come from the agency that make the rules and regulations. The U.S. DOT has a school called the Transportation Safety Institute located in Oklahoma. “But,” you say, “I can't afford to go to Oklahoma.” Well, thanks to the TSI, the Internet and NTA, the training courses you need to take to show your current or potential carrier that you have been properly rehabilitated (trained) are now available at your finger tips.
The proof has always been, as they say, in the pudding. Everyone who successfully passes these online courses will be able to download a Certificate of Completion issued by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s “Transportation Safety Institute” with their name on it. What better proof is there, that even though you made some mistakes in the past, you have gone out of your way to take the proper courses to save your job? Even though, under CSA 2010, the driver’s safety record will be judged on seven categories, you will find all the necessary courses, even the latest cargo securement courses, at the NTA On-Line DOT/TSI Institute. The NTA DOT-OSHA Super Store now has over 630 items (classes) in it to choose from.
For the motor carriers out there, the CSA 2010 Scorecard that NTA offers draws from the same carrier data sources as the FMCSA. This scorecard applies the same methods currently being used by FMCSA to calculate a motor carrier’s score. So, now, motor carrier companies will be able to get an advance look at their drivers’ safety records and find out before the actual advent of CSA 2010 what the impact of those records will be on the carrier’s Fitness Score under the new and upcoming rules and systems.
This scorecard system helps carriers take a critical look at their (and their drivers’) records and determine in advance what they need to focus on to ensure safety compliance and avoid an FMCSA intervention. Under the new CSA 2010 intervention system, it’s three strikes and then you’re out!
What motor carriers with a poor “Safety Fitness Determination” can look forward to in the first step (or strike) is a warning letter and targeted roadside inspections. If that doesn’t do the trick, the next step (second strike) is that the carrier can then either have an off-site or on-site investigation, with the latter being a very comprehensive, focused look at your business. The last step (or third strike) consists of the motor carrier having to submit a Cooperative Safety Plan, a Notice of Violation (fine), and a Notice of Claim, which basically consists of a plan of action explaining how the motor carrier is going to pay the fine. If none of these interventions work, you are done! End of story!!
~ NTA is a name and organization you can trust. Not only is our website (www.ntassoc.com) an official US DOT Internet Training Site, but we are also the administrators of a Nationally Accredited Drug and Alcohol Program. If you have any questions, call me at (562) 279-0557 or send me an e-mail at wayne@ntassoc.com. Until next month, “Drive Safe – Drive Smart!”