May 9, 2006

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Headline News

• FMCSA Proposes Improvements to SafeStat
• FMCSA to Modernize CDLIS
• FMCSA Assistant Administrator updates industry in Hartford
• The NPRM to Govern Roadability of Interchanged Equipment Completed
• Innovators: 'One stop shopping'
• Money Available for Trucking Industry Students
• Attention Amateur Photographers: Give TCA Your Best Shot and Win $1000!
• Learning Styles of Today's New Drivers Require a Departure From the Traditional
• Virginia Taking Driver Shortage in Own Hands
• Kentucky Work Force Initiative to Target Trucking Industry

FMCSA Proposes Improvements to SafeStat

On May 3 rd , The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) proposed improvements to its Motor Carrier Safety Status (SafeStat) Measurement System algorithm. The SafeStat system analyzes current and historical safety performance and compliance information to rank the relative safety fitness of commercial motor carriers. SafeStat enables FMCSA to quantify and monitor trends in the safety status of individual Motor carriers. FMCSA focuses compliance review and roadside inspection resources on carriers posing the greatest potential safety risk. The proposed improvements are intended to make the algorithm more effective in identifying motor carriers posing a high crash risk.  

The Agency has proposed improvements to the SafeStat system that would simplify the Accident Safety Evaluation Area (SEA), increase the relevance of moving violations in the Driver SEA , include in the Vehicle SEA vehicle out-of-service violations from inspections marked as driver-only, and shorten the data exposure time period considered by SafeStat from 30 months to 24 months.

Details on the agency's planned changes can be found at FMCSA's Analysis & Information Online Website: http://ai.fmcsa.dot.gov/SafeStat/enhancements.asp. Comments on the changes and any other needed revisions to SafeStat can be submitted at this website and must be entered before July 3, 2006.

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FMCSA to Modernize CDLIS

On May 2 nd , the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration announced plans to modernize the Commercial Driver's License Information System (CDLIS) in response to the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, and Efficient Transportation Equity Act: a Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU), which was signed into law on August 10, 2005. As required by SAFETEA-LU, the modernization plan must:

(a) Comply with applicable Federal information technology security standards;
(b) Provide for the electronic exchange of all information, including posting of convictions;
(c) Contain self-auditing features to ensure that data is being posted correctly and consistently by the States;
(d) Integrate the commercial driver's license and medical certificate;
(e) Provide a schedule for modernization of the system.  

SAFETEA-LU has authorized a total of $28 million (FY 2006-2009) to carry out this project. Click here to review the Federal Register notice.  

For information on these regulatory updates or other safety matters, feel free to contact David Heller, CDS at (703) 838-8847 or via e-mail at dheller@truckload.org.

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FMCSA Assistant Administrator updates industry in Hartford

John Hill, Assistant Administrator for the Federal Motor Carriers Safety Administration (FMCSA) briefed industry professionals at the Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA) Annual Meeting in Hartford , Connecticut .

In addition to renewing the agency pledge to cut the large truck crash-related fatality rate, Hill provided the audience with an update to the following:

• A rulemaking on the merging of commercial driver license records with the medical certification database that will be released “in the next few weeks.”
• A rulemaking for electronic onboard recorders (EOBRs) to be released later this year.
• A revised rule for new entrants due later this year.
• An NPRM to address the need to track carriers that avoid bad safety records by shutting down and re-opening under a new carrier name while respecting privacy issues.

Hill also announced that DOT Secretary Norman Mineta will announce new federal programs designed to reduce highway congestion within the next month.

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The NPRM to Govern Roadability of Interchanged Equipment Completed

The initial draft of a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to govern the roadability of interchanged equipment has been completed by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and submitted to the Department of Transportation for review.

The draft will be sent to the White House Office of Management and Budget for final approval, once the review is completed. The proposed rule is expected to be published in the Federal Register by late May or early June.

The proposed rule calls for intermodal equipment providers to take the following actions.

• Register with FMCSA and supply identifying data in equipment that will be updated every two years
• Display a unique identifying number on each intermodal container chassis offered for transportation in interstate commerce
• Establish a systematic inspection, repair, and maintenance program to ensure the safe operating condition of each intermodal container chassis intended for interchange
• Engage in periodic inspection of equipment intended for interchange
• Establish procedures to respond to driver and motor carrier reports of equipment with mechanical defects and deficiencies
• Establish procedures, and provide sufficient space, for drivers to perform pre-trip inspections of tendered intermodal equipment
• Develop and implement procedures to repair any equipment damage, defects, or deficiencies identified as part of a pre-trip inspection, or replace the equipment, prior to the driver's departure
• Create a system to maintain driver inspection reports submitted by motor carriers
• Maintain all inspection, repair, and maintenance records
• Refrain from placing intermodal equipment in service on the public highways if the equipment has been found to pose an “imminent hazard”

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Innovators: 'One stop shopping'

These days, recruiter Lisa LaFreniere's cell phone rings early and often. On a Tuesday morning in February, the first calls from hopeful truck drivers and technicians started at 7:30. The phone continued to ring during a brief meeting with her boss, CTL Distribution President Ken Bauer. By 9 a.m., job placement workers were calling wanting to know why LaFreniere wasn't already at their office to interview a waiting pool of applicants.

CTL Distribution recruiter Lisa LaFreniere interviews an applicant at a local unemployment center. The center gives her work space, among other services.

But LaFreniere's ring tone is music to her ears. Finding drivers wasn't always this easy at CTL's Mulberry, Fla. terminal where the company — one of the 20 largest U.S. tanker fleets — is headquartered.

“Our recruiting strategy used to be ‘advertise and wait for the phone to ring,' ” LaFreniere says. But the phone didn't ring enough. And with the Mulberry terminal located on a dead-end road near a phosphate mine, walk-ins were rare. But all that has changed. CTL isn't waiting for drivers to come to its recruiters. Instead, through an ambitious partnership with Florida 's unemployment offices, CTL is going to its recruits.

The Mulberry terminal now gets 90 to 95 percent of its new drivers through unemployment centers in Polk and surrounding counties. The $55,000 the terminal budgeted for local classified advertising in 2004 now goes to other marketing efforts. Other terminals in Florida also are benefiting, and the company also is finding mechanics and laborers.

The success is due not only to LaFreniere's efforts but also to dramatic changes in the unemployment process, says Dan McNamee, vice president for capacity development and human resources at CTL Distribution's parent company, Comcar Industries. “When I began recruiting drivers 16 years ago, the unemployment offices used to be a place where you collected benefits,” McNamee says. “They didn't help you get a job.”

But all that has changed. The Workforce Investment Act passed by Congress in 1998, along with other legislation, has changed unemployment offices into career centers where the unemployed, the underemployed, veterans and welfare recipients transition into new jobs. Job seekers receive more than a check: They have access to training, education and career counseling.

In Florida where Comcar Industries and CTL Distribution are based, the state's Agency of Workforce Innovation has 24 career centers called One Stops, where job seekers receive financial and career assistance, meet potential employers and attend job fairs. Businesses use the facilities as recruiting offices and partner with the state to place out-of-work residents into open jobs.

LaFreniere stumbled upon the One Stop centers as a recruiting option because her sister-in-law lost her job. Like McNamee, she figured such centers were where people picked up benefit checks, but her sister-in-law's experience changed that impression. “She immediately sat down with a career officer who asked her where she wanted to be in 10 years. She found a job within two weeks through them. When we were looking for new ways to recruit drivers, I thought about her.”

When LaFreniere approached the One Stop centers, she wasn't sure if her gamble would pay off. Things moved slowly at first, but through persistence, she built a solid relationship with the centers' career counselors. “They'll call me and tell me to swing by and pick up applications. They're anxious to place people, and I'm anxious to hire them.”

The new relationship was beneficial for both parties: The centers got an engaged local employer with lots of positions to fill, and CTL got access to out-of-work residents eager to join the work force. CTL also gets a number of other services from the centers, including office space for interviewing, job fairs and pre-employment screening.

“They're probably better screened than your typical applicant,” McNamee says. “They understand our requirements. They understand the job. The centers are actually allowing us to spend more time with better qualified people.”

CTL Distribution doesn't often find fully qualified employees who hold commercial driver's licenses. But the center makes sure job seekers know what kind of job they are applying for and are familiar with the physical and lifestyle demands of a truck driver. And it ensures applicants meet the company's standards — screening out felons, for example.

The screened pool of applicants is shown a video about CTL Distribution and the job they might fill, including would-be truck technicians. They then meet with LaFreniere or another recruiter for an interview. If hired for a driving position, they go through CTL Distribution's three-week driving school.

“We're in a unique position,” LaFreniere says. “Anyone I interview doesn't have to have a CDL. I can train them and put them to work.”

If a new hire is eligible for unemployment benefits, these continue in most cases during the school period. The state also may help new hires cover transportation or child-care costs during the training period. Once school is completed, new hires begin drawing a paycheck and enter the work force. A year later, if a driver is still with CTL Distribution, the company forgives the cost of their school.

Applicants from the One Stop fall into four basic labor categories: traditional unemployed job seekers, veterans, welfare-to-work applicants and young workers, age 16 to 24. With veteran applicants, CTL Distribution often can find CDL holders or applicants with equipment experience. In fact, the company has built a relationship with the representatives of veterans groups that have offices at the centers. Those representatives steer National Guard and Reserve retirees from transportation companies toward CTL Distribution.

For other applicants in the welfare-to-work pool, the opportunity to drive a truck opens a new door. “They might have had a job before making $6.25 an hour. That's $12,000 a year. Now they can make over $30,000,” says LaFreniere.

The centers also can steer teenage applicants with an interest and aptitude for mechanics toward the company. “We don't expect them to have tools, and we don't expect them to be certified,” LaFreniere says. “But we expect them to work through that.”

There are other benefits to the arrangement. CTL Distribution and its parent company get a public relations bump from employing out-of-work and underemployed Florida residents. Tax credits also are possible, but McNamee says the company isn't yet chasing those credits because of the man-hours involved with qualifying for them.

The effort is limited largely to CTL Distribution's Mulberry terminal, even though CTL has 13 terminals in eight states and hauls chemicals and phosphates in 48 states. In the nearby Tampa terminal, conventional recruiting still works. “If they run an ad for drivers, they get inundated,” LaFreniere says. Plus, other recruiters find it hard to believe an unemployment center is a good source for potential drivers — even though most unemployment centers in the country are similar to the One Stop centers in Florida .

Still, LaFreniere and another recruiter working through the program find applicants willing to do over-the-road work at one of Comcar Industries' five carriers. And drivers hired at CTL Distribution and trained at its school eventually may transfer to over-the-road jobs at sister companies or move to other terminals.

LaFreniere and McNamee concede that getting other recruiters to consider their local unemployment offices is a challenge. “We have to battle the image of an unemployment office,” LaFreniere says. “I've even had to re-educate my co-workers. When I tell them what I'm doing at the One Stop centers, they say, ‘You're going where?' ”
LaFreniere smiles because she knows drivers are there.

For more information you can contact Dan McNamee at 863-967-1101 or dmcnamee@comcar.com.

Reprinted with permission from March 2006 Commercial Carrier Journal and written by Sean Kelley.

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Money Available for Trucking Industry Students

Truckload Carriers Association Scholarship Applications are now available for distribution to your employees or independent contractors. Any rising junior or senior attending an accredited four-year college or university and who is affiliated with a trucking company is encouraged to apply.

To obtain a scholarship application, please visit the TCA website at www.truckload.org and click on the scholarship button on the left on the homepage, or contact Nancy O'Liddy at 703-838-1950. The deadline for receipt of applications is Monday, May 22 , 2006. If transcripts are not yet ready to enclose with your application, you may send them as soon as they are available.

Last year, the TCA Scholarship Fund awarded nearly $40,000 in scholarships to individuals who showed financial need, earned a GPA of 3.3 or better , had an excellent scholastic record, maintained full-time status and were individuals of high character and integrity. Please note that students pursuing transportation and business degrees will be given special consideration. Scholarships are awarded without regard to sex, race, color, national origin or religion and all forms must be typed. This is an excellent benefit for you to offer to your employees or independent contractors and their family members.

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Attention Amateur Photographers: Give TCA Your Best Shot and Win $1000!
CONTEST DEADLINE - JUNE 16, 2006

TCA's Truck Driver Photo Contest is open to any truck driver who is currently employed with or leased to a trucking company. Photographs from professional photographers will not be accepted. No more than three photos may be submitted per driver. The photos should capture life on the road and portray trucking in a positive light. Digital photos are accepted as long as you include a print out of the photo and the digital file is 300 dpi or larger to ensure a high enough resolution.

Applicants should clearly label each photo with their name, address, telephone number, and company name, address, and telephone number. Please do not write on the back of the photo, use an address label or separate piece of paper affixed to the back. Any information you can provide on where you took the photo and the subject of the photo is appreciated.

Contest Prizes!

The grand prizewinner will receive $1,000.
The 2nd place winner will receive $750.
The 3rd place winner will receive $500.
4th through 6th place winners will each receive $100.
Honorable mentions will receive $50 each.

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Learning Styles of Today's New Drivers Require a Departure From the Traditional

Twenty years ago, readin', writin' and ‘rithmetic – but mostly readin' -- was the prescription for most textbooks, and the only one available for learners of every age – from kindergarten to post high school.  If you couldn't read well, you couldn't learn much -- period.

Today, thanks to several generations cutting their learning teeth on readiness programs such as “ Sesame Street ,” “Electric Company,” and “Reading Rainbow,” not to mention scores of video and computer games, learning styles have changed from simply reading to digesting elements from the entire visual spectrum and from passive to active, hands-on exercises serving to reinforce the concept of the day.

No longer are concepts learned simply by reading.  No longer will mere words on a page convey the message.  Instead, a wide variety of graphic elements, such as photographs, film clips, animated cartoon characters, and colorful formats are required to present, explain, and reinforce each new concept as one idea builds carefully on the last.

This see-change in learning styles – which applies to new commercial drivers of all ages – puts the proverbial ball in the court of instructors and trainers with the mandate of presenting classroom materials in formats that match the new styles of learning and comprehending the necessary concepts.

In classrooms across the country, instructors are seeking new, more visually-rich approaches to teaching basic concepts that will trigger the learning process in students who have become accustomed to the colorful graphics and innovative animation of video and computer games.  Most are finding success in using PowerPoint™ presentations, videos, and other computer-generated tools.

Savvy instructors are also finding that many learners would rather “see” a new concept demonstrated – through video, PowerPoint, or hands-on activities – than read about it, so they are seeking books and teaching aids that are graphically more powerful and visually more impressive.  Not only do graphic illustrations shorten the learning curve and maximize classroom time, but some instructors also point out that this more graphic-rich approach in the classroom makes a significant difference on the driving course and during behind-the-wheel exercises.

Ultimately, to meet the demands of today's new learning styles, curriculum materials must exceed the bounds of traditional books and other learning tools to more effectively teach the next generations of tractor-trailer drivers, including hardcore visual learners as well as virtual non-readers.

“Our task as a publisher is to capture a variety of learners at every level of learning,” said Kristen Davis, Product Development Manager for Thomson Delmar Learning.  “As publishers, we also recognize the importance texts and other learning materials play in efficiently teaching tractor-trailer drivers for this extremely important job.

“No longer is our job as simple as printing words on a page,” Davis continued.  “Rather, the various learning styles found in today's classroom demand that we incorporate more creativity, more innovation and more out-of-the-box approaches to teaching. We believe we are meeting the challenge of the new learning styles and are enthusiastic about making these graphically rich products available to truck driving schools around the country and their students.”

Ultimately, the test for every instructor in every discipline will be to present information in formats compatible with ever-changing learning styles.  The challenge comes in being resourceful and innovative enough to provide state-of-the-art materials that will communicate information effectively and efficiently within the learning styles and parameters of comprehension for every new generation.

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Virginia Taking Driver Shortage in Own Hands

One initiative is the creation of its new Maritime and Transportation Center , at the Tidewater Community College , which will house a collection of educational programs for jobs in demand both on the waterfront and with supporting businesses. The center will offer programs such as computer aiding drafting, logistics management and truck driving, while also adding maritime welding, shipfitting and modeling.

The Virginia Maritime Association has secured a 320,000 grant from the Virginia Tobacco Indemnification and Community Revitalization Commission to increase the port's driver supply. A portion of the grant money will pay for enhancing the driver training program at Southside Virginia Community College 's Blackstone campus; the improvements, such as hiring additional instructors and lighting the driver training course for evening classes. The remainder of the grant will be used for marketing efforts to entice workers - - particularly those along the US 58 corridor - - to seek jobs with trucking companies specifically doing business with the port.

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Kentucky Work Force Initiative to Target Trucking Industry

The Governor of Kentucky, Ernie Fletcher, has announced a program to increase Kentucky 's work force in the trucking industry. The program as reported by CCJ Magazine, is called the Entrepreneurial Trucking Initiative, is designed to bring economic opportunity to individuals in the Greater Louisville area, particularly those in the designated Empowerment Zone, a 5,400-acre tract in the center of the city that houses one of the community's most distressed inner-city neighborhoods.

The Entrepreneurial Trucking Initiative, which will be administered by Jefferson Community and Technical College , will serve 40 individuals this year. Eligible individuals who complete the eight-week program will obtain a commercial drive's license. Graduates who place with a trucking company through the program should earn about $34,000 a year, says Kavanaugh-Turner, executive director of the Governor's Office of Minority Empowerment.

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