The anxieties caused by the FMCSA’s new Compliance Safety Accountability performance measurement tool may point at a more fundamental issue, meaning more training and education about the program and what it means may be needed. A recently released report from the American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI) found that nearly two-thirds of the 4,500 drivers surveyed expressed concern about losing their jobs as a Continue Reading

For now, according to insurance providers, fleets shouldn’t worry about higher premiums as a result of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s new Compliance-Safety-Accountability (CSA) program going into effect. Speaking at the 2011 Truckload Carriers Association annual meeting, a panel of insurance providers said the typical factors–motor vehicle records, accident history, past claims/loss experience–would determine a carrier’s Continue Reading

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s new safety performance measurement tool is in effect, but anticipated cost of its full implementation are on the rise, according to a new Government Accountability Office report. First developed in 2004, CSA has undergone recent changes to assess and potentially fine drivers for violations across several categories, including maintenance and fatigued driving. CSA costs in Continue Reading

A recent evaluation of the new Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA) safety measurement shows a number of trends that both drivers and carriers should keep in mind. Many of the comparisons are drawn between CSA and SafeStat, the forerunner to the latest model, and based on research evaluated by TransCore’s CarrierWatch. For starters, the new model provides a more complete picture of data. Only 23 percent of carriers have no data recorded, compared to about 50 percent under the old model. Additional information provided in the white paper includes the states which Continue Reading

With the recent enforcement of the FMCSA’s CSA 2010 safety measurement tool, it didn’t take long for technology to catch up. Qualcomm just announced the launch of its CSA Safety Performance Service, which is available in Basic and Deluxe service, that helps carriers manage their performance according to the new scoring standards. The service is designed to help fleets improve their SMS scores and reduce inspections, violations and accidents with access to the following: comprehensive views of a fleet’s performance across FMCSA’s Continue Reading

With the rollout of CSA 2010 earlier this week, only a fraction of the 758, 682 active motor carriers are ranked–barely 12 percent, according to analysis from CCJ magazine. The data detailing safety performance under the FMCSA’s new measurement tool went public for the first time on Sunday, Dec. 12, when the program was officially launched. Of the 92,184 carriers that are ranked in at least one BASIC, 52,967 carriers have at least one alert, meaning they exceeded the threshold for intervention. The greatest number of alerts, 29,207, are in the Fatigued Driving BASIC, followed by the Continue Reading

With enforcement of its new safety measurement tool beginning Sunday, Dec. 12, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) was quick to make the data from its renamed Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA) program available online here. Multiple groups requested a hold on making the information public, citing the potential damaging economic repercussions for shippers and carriers with low scores. The FMCSA countered that the scores were no more harmful than the Continue Reading

At an industry conference in Washington, D.C., last week, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) announced that it would release a “roadmap” within the next six to eight months that outlines drafts of regulations it has and intends to propose over the next five years. Anne Ferro, an FMSCA administrator, said those proposals would be focused on using technology to boost road safety by identifying high-risk drivers. Such a focus meshes well with–and in the future could even further–the intent of the agency’s CSA 2010 safety measurement tool that assesses and Continue Reading

Implementation of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s Comprehensive Safety Analysis new performance measurement tool is being challenged by three motor carrier organizations who claim that it could have a negative effect on the trucking industry, particularly for smaller companies. At the very least, the National Association of Small Trucking Companies, The Expedite Alliance of North America and the Air & Expedited Motor Carriers Association hope to block the public release of certain data. In justifying its request for a stay, the associations said that CSA and, especially, the publication of BASIC ratings “will result in irreparable competitive and economic harm to motor carriers and freight brokers” while a delay will cause no harm to the Continue Reading

A new service from Qualcomm Enterprise Services (QES) will be available shortly before the new Comphrensive Safety Analysis (CSA) 2010 rolls out later this year. Qualcomm’s CSA Safety Performance Service is designed to use the same government data and safety assessment methods to combine real-time data and predictive analysis with a carrier’s existing safety data and CSA 2010 scores. The system includes work plans designed to coach improvements in specific driver behaviors, such as speeding or fatigue, that if left uncorrected will lead to an actual warning or violation. These plans can Continue Reading