Blog Posts Tagged "Department of Transportation"

Tired of filling out paperwork when you have no changes to report on your DVIR (Daily Vehicle Inspection Report)? Well, apparently the U.S. D.O.T. is also tired of reading them – so as of December 2014, if you have no mechanical or safety issues to report, fuh-get about it.

A recent lawsuit may change training requirements for those seeking to embark on a career in the trucking industry. Though auto fatalities have dropped in recent years, fatalities involving large trucks are on the rise, increasing by 4 percent in 2012. Injuries have also increased 18 percent, racking up an astounding 4,000 deaths and over 70,000 injuries.

Commercial truck driving is one of the country's Top 10 most hazardous jobs. When you spend your work day (and night) battling traffic and inattentive drivers on America's highways, safety needs to be Job One if you want to return home safely. As every heavy duty truck driver knows, job safety begins with personal safety.

The lack of adequate, safe truck parking is a growing problem. States have been closing public rest areas to save money and truck stop parking is limited, leaving truckers to pull over on entrance and exit ramps and seek other alternatives when parking isn't available. According to research by the American Trucking Assns.

Truck size and weight has always been a controversial issue and the debate is heating up as Congress has agreed to study the increasing truck sizes and weights to 97,000 pounds on six axles.

Men driving trucks big rigs and pickups are the biggest offenders when it comes to breaking passenger restraint laws, according to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA).

Perhaps the most horrific traffic accidents in recent history were attributed to poor visibility due to fog, smoke, or a mixture of the two.

While navigation systems are becoming increasingly commonplace in the nation's commercial vehicles, the impact that these devices have on driver behavior, decision-making and safety is not fully understood, according to the American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI).

Heartland Express, Inc. has received the prestigious SmartWay Excellence Award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The award is given in recognition of the company as a true industry leader in energy efficiency and freight supply chain environmental performance.

Many of the new and used big Semi-tractors now have devices available that can be distracting to the driver. There has been some talk of limiting what gadgets are allowed.

The U.S. Department of Transportation's new ban on handheld cell phones for commercial truck and bus drivers that went into effect on January 3, 2012 for all interstate travel, extending to holding, dialing and reaching for cell phones while driving has stirred some opposition.

The US Department of Transportation is now proposing a complete cell phone ban in commercial vehicles, including semi trailers and buses. This follows the current ban on texting while driving and affects 4 million drivers.

Ray LaHood is making some sense now, tell us your stories here.