The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is debating whether to require stability control systems for highway trucks in light of research that shows its addition could prevent nearly 3,500 rollover-related accidents and save more than 100 lives annually. Research from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the University of Michigan indicates that rollovers reportedly occur in Continue Reading

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA) Comprehensive Safety Analysis 2010 (CSA 2010) model won’t be enforced until later this year, but already some groups are raising concerns about its methodology. To address these, the FMSCA has made some updates, which include updating the severity weights for some roadside inspection violations and using a more strategic approach to address Continue Reading

British Columbia and local safety officials are stepping up commercial vehicle inspections for the rest of the summer. In particular, Commercial Vehicle Safety and Enforcement officers will be looking for critical defects, such as with steering, tires, brakes and rims, that should have been easily detected prior to making the trip and are indicative of poor maintenance. According to the province’s amendments to Continue Reading

The overall number of inspections completed in the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s (CVSA) Roadcheck 2010 were lower, but officials are taking the almost unchanged levels of compliance rates among drivers and vehicles as a positive sign. Still, this latest round of inspections reveals there are some areas for Continue Reading

Numbers from a data mining software company provide a preliminary look at what the 2010 Comprehensive Safety Analysis (CSA 2010) safety screening program might hold. Based on the analysis from Vigillo, drivers and carriers will have their hands full in preparing to comply with the program’s standards. For starters, 69 percent of data collected for 1,500 fleets indicate that a majority would incur some sort of Continue Reading

A new line of portable battery powered trailer testers will be released by Innovative Products of America (IPA) for testing lights and electric brakes. According to the company, technicians can easily diagnose short circuits, open and crossed circuits, poor grounds and test electric brakes, all by Continue Reading

Paperwork for for-hire carriers just got reduced, thanks to a final rule issued by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). As a result, they will no longer need to maintain a minimum in cargo insurance, and beginning in March 2011, carriers and freight forwarders will no longer have to file evidence of Continue Reading

Despite its praise for the efforts of Comprehensive Safety Analysis (CSA) 2010, the American Trucking Association voiced some of its concerns before the House Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee on Highways and Transit last week. These concerns specifically relate to safety and equality. For example, the ATA suggested determining causation of a crash before entered into drivers’ records so Continue Reading

An estimated 70,000 safety inspections were conducted during a 72-hour blitz known as Operation Roadcheck last week in the U.S., Canada and parts of Mexico. Sponsored by the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA), the effort helps unite law enforcement and regulatory agencies and sharpen their ability to hone in on violations. But it also benefits the trucking industry as well, some say. By Continue Reading

Through September 30, Thermo King is offering customers rebates of up to $250 for qualifying parts for Thermo King and Carrier units. For six years, the company has made such a program available on belts and filters, alternators, starters, injectors, water pumps, TriPac parts and more. Any questions should be directed to Continue Reading