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FMCSA...Company snapshot Safer Program from Campbell Logistic Services.

FMCSA...Comprehensive Safety Analysis from Campbell Logistic Services.

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Billy Woolsey: Unfit truckers a menace? Not according to the statistics

The industry takes safety seriously, and it shows. Car drivers are the likelier danger.

By BILLY WOOLSEY

There is no argument when it comes to highway safety: Unfit drivers should stay off the road. Car driver, truck driver, RV driver -- it makes no difference. If you are fatigued or medically unfit to safely operate your vehicle, you should park it.

Unfortunately, the July 28 editorial "Feds should get unfit truckers off the road" creates the impression that the nation's roads are overrun with unsafe truck drivers. Nothing is further from the truth.

By all relevant government safety data, the trucking industry is the safest it has been since recordkeeping began in the 1970s. The fatality, injury and property-damage crash rates per 100 million miles all stand at record lows. And contrary to what was reported in the editorial, medical problems cause only 3 percent of truck accidents.

Why the strong record of success? While the trucking industry is committed to strong compliance with the myriad federal regulations, our real goal is safety. When we undertake random drug and alcohol tests, annual physicals or extensive background checks, we are more interested in putting a safe driver behind the wheel than simply complying with a regulation. Not only is it the right thing to do, but it makes good business sense. A safe driver is an efficient and productive driver.

While we support vigorous enforcement of truck safety regulations, truck crashes represent only a small portion of the overall traffic fatality problem.

Nine out of 10 (88 percent) of the 40,000-plus vehicle-related deaths that occur on the nation's highways each year do not involve trucks. And when trucks are involved, multiple public and private-sector studies show that the car driver is at fault more than 70 percent of the time.

But here is the real shocker. A 2006 U.S. Department of Transportation study reported that, in car-truck crashes involving injuries or fatalities, the car driver is found on average to be twice as fatigued as the professional truck driver.

Government reports about "unfit truck drivers" may generate a lot of attention, but they miss the mark. The real story lies in the fact that you are five times more likely to be killed by the driver of another car -- a driver who has no regulations determining how long or under what conditions he or she may drive.

Any way you look at it, a truck driver is the safest, most conscientious person with whom to be sharing the road.

Billy Woolsey is chairman of the Minnesota Trucking Association.

EPA Keeps Biofuels Levels in Place after Considering Texas' Request

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has denied a request from the state of Texas to reduce the nationwide Renewable Fuels Standard (RFS). As a result, the required total volume of renewable fuels, such as ethanol and biodiesel, mandated by law to be blended into the fuel supply will remain at 9 billion gallons in 2008 and 11.1 billion gallons in 2009.

"After reviewing the facts, it was clear this request did not meet the criteria in the law," said EPA Administrator Stephen L. Johnson. "The RFS remains an important tool in our ongoing efforts to reduce America's greenhouse gas emissions and lessen our dependence on foreign oil, in aggressive yet practical ways."

Current law authorizes EPA to waive the national RFS if the agency determines that the mandated biofuel volumes would cause "severe harm" to the economy or the environment. The agency recognizes that high commodity prices are having economic impacts, but EPA's extensive analysis of Texas' request found no compelling evidence that the RFS mandate is causing severe economic harm during the time period specified by Texas.

The Energy Policy Act of 2005 established the RFS program - and included amendments to the Clean Air Act to set strict criteria for RFS-related waivers. RFS nationwide volume mandates were increased in the Energy Independence and Security Act, which was signed into law in December 2007.

EPA conducted detailed analysis, consulted closely with the Departments of Energy and Agriculture, and carefully considered more than 15,000 public comments in response to the Texas request.

This is the first RFS-related waiver request.

The National Biodiesel Board praised the decision. "We appreciate the EPA taking a careful approach to the waiver request and agree with their determination that it should be denied," said NBB CEO Joe Jobe. "It is important to note that all renewable fuels qualify for the current RFS. In fact, if the RFS is waived or cut in half in 2008, then the growth of all biofuels, including 'advanced biofuels' such as biodiesel, would be severely hindered.

The Association of Equipment Manufacturers also supported the decision, saying such a waiver would do great harm to the renewable fuels industry, rural development, the environment and the American driver, while not alleviating the concerns of the state of Texas.

More information: http://www.epa.gov/otaq/renewablefuels

 

 

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