call on washington LSU1 Tiger Truck 34 Hour Restart CDL BMI Debacle CSA State Inequities

Transcription

1 Volume 5, Issue 3 Quarter 3, 2014 call on washington LSU1 Tiger Truck 34 Hour Restart CDL BMI Debacle CSA State Inequities

2 #1 Volvo dealer in New Orleans parts Service Sales leasing rental used and new Medium duty and heavy duty Official New Volvo Rental & Leasing Company (RMB Leasing of Louisiana) meet our new volvo sales manager, MARK STONE M R B Leasing & Rental 6121 Jefferson Highway New Orleans, LA general manager Glen Koch Parts P.J. Tamporello Parts Manager Service Frank Martin Service Manager Sales Mike Spinato Commercial Truck Manager Sales Mark Stone Volvo Sales Manager

3 Q Open Road 1

4 Volume Pricing Service after the Sale Fleet Specialist We Carry New & Used Frac Tanks Crude Oil Trailers Vacuum Trailers Aluminum Water Trailers Lowboys Pneumatic Trailers Drop Deck Trailers Flatbed Trailers LAFAYETTE 1101 Doyle Melancon Ext Breaux Bridge, LA Main: Watts: Service: Parts: NEW ORLEANS Airline, St. Rose, LA I-130 Exit 2 - Kenner Main: Watts: Service: Parts: Open Road Q3 2014

5 table of CONTENTS Table of Contents FEATURES LSU 1: Trucking for the Tigers By Timothy Boone 7 LPB Public Square Highway Funding Down the Road: Our Transportation Future 9 18 Looking Back Years Hour Restart HOS Changes Get Bipartisan Senate Support By Timothy Boone 12 What is Your BMI? CDI Medical Certificate Debacle By Ted Griggs 13 Improving Trucking s Image Join the Movement! Elizabeth Barna, Guest Writer, ATA 17 COVER STORY Call on Washington By Steve Wheeler 18 I-12 Road Construction Resurfaces By Diana Pietrogallo Convention Uneven Playing Field Inconsistent State CSA Enforcement By Ted Griggs 28 National Truck Driver Appreciation Week LMTA Recognizes Truck Drivers 32 Million Mile Drivers Safe Drivers Deserve Recognition By Olivia McClure 33 Judicial Climate in Louisiana 34 DEPARTMENTS From the Executive Director: By Cathy Gautreaux 5 Advertiser Resource Index 36 Calendar of Events 36 New LMTA Members Q Open Road 3

6 Heavy, Medium, Light Duty, and Lowboy Towing and Recovery no job too large Towing & Recovery, Inc. 45+ Years in Business We don t want an arm or a leg, we just want your tows! Proud Members of: Louisiana Motor Transport Association American Trucking Associations Baton Rouge Incident Management Committe Gulf Region Intelligent Transportation Society Better Business Bureau We accept 4 Open EFS, Road Comchek, Q3 T-Chek, 2014 and all major credit cards.

7 Open Road is owned by the Louisiana Motor Transport Association and published four times a year. For more information, contact the LMTA at publisher Staci Buhler staci.buhler@louisianatrucking.com executive editor Cathy F. Gautreaux cathy.gautreaux@louisianatrucking.com creative director Kristin Perpignano kristin.perpignano@louisianatrucking.com production editor Dana P. Weidman dana.weidman@louisianatrucking.com photographer John Ballance john.ballance@louisianatrucking.com advertising DIRECTOR Lisa Busceme lisa.busceme@louisianatrucking.com contributing writers Ted Griggs, Diana Pietrogallo, Olivia McClure, Steve Wheeler Executive Director Cathy F. Gautreaux administrative services Dana P. Weidman Greg Morrison PRESIDENT Quality Transport, Inc. Terry Warren 1ST VICE PRESIDENT Aeropres Corporation John Austin 2ND VICE PRESIDENT Bengal Transportation Services, LLC Bookkeeper Patricia Mouch accounting@louisianatrucking.com LMTA Officers Ellis Vliet Chairman of the Board Turner Industries Group, LLC Steve Sievert SECRETARY Southern Tire Mart Truck Centers Sam Lampo Treasurer Quality Transport, Inc. Judy Smart VICE PRESIDENT AT LARGE RoadRunner Towing & Recovery, Inc. John Majors ATA Vice President Quality Transport, Inc. Greg Stewart ATA VICE PRESIDENT- ALTERNATE Safeway Transportation letter from the executive director We cannot expect people to have respect for law and order until we teach respect to those we have entrusted to enforce those laws. Hunter S. Thompson On August 31, 1939, the Louisiana Motor Transport Association was created by a savvy group of business men who needed a voice. They needed an organization to represent them. To tell their story. To earn the respect of elected and appointed officials in Louisiana and in Washington, D.C. That was 75 years ago the mission is the same but the playbook has changed. Why is there a need for a National Truck Driver Appreciation Week (page 32) and the Million Mile Safe Driver initiative (page 33)? Because the public and elected officials need to be reminded that the person behind the wheel of a truck delivering goods, supplies and services deserves a little respect. And, sometimes the people in this industry need a gentle reminder that self-respect goes a long way in earning respect from others. Respect is revealed in many ways. It can be the invitation to have LMTA representatives participate in the LPB Public Square televised debate on transportation funding (pg. 9), getting a U.S. Senator to defend our Hours of Service issue on the Senate floor (pg. 11) or in the collaboration between the trucking industry and LA-DOTD on future highway projects before the projects are built (pg. 20). The respect that LMTA has earned over the past 75 years has been the result of a lot of hard work by many, many people fighting for the issues, defending our industry and ultimately embracing change. Although much has changed in the trucking industry over the past 75 years, the principles upon which our organization was built continue today as a testament to our great industry: Take the high road. Do the right thing for the right reasons in the right way. Never turn a blind eye to that which is unjust. And, never, never, never give up. Over the next few issues of the LMTA OPEN ROAD magazine, we will share with you memories of our past reminders of what was a grand time for a great organization now celebrating its Diamond Anniversary. To those that came before us with a vision for the future our hats off to you. For those who follow us, take note. You ve got some big shoes to fill Louisiana Motor Transport Association (LMTA) is a Louisiana corporation of trucking companies, private carrier fleets and businesses which serve or supply the trucking industry. LMTA serves these companies as a government affairs representative before legislative, regulatory and executive branches of government on issues that affect the trucking industry. The association also provides public relations services and serves as a forum for industry meetings and membership relations. For information contact LMTA at: Louisiana Motor Transport Association, Inc Bennington Avenue PO Box Baton Rouge, LA Phone: Fax: Cathy F. Gautreaux LMTA Executive Director Q Open Road 5

8 6 Open Road Q3 2014

9 With LSU football season back in full swing, the purple and gold Peterbilt truck dubbed LSU 1 is back on the highways across the South, helping haul equipment for the Tiger football team. LSU has had the truck for 10 years now, said equipment manager Greg Stringfellow. Before that, the university rented trucks to transport football equipment when the Tigers had road games. The truck handles all the equipment the football team needs for a game, including medical supplies. It s a rolling equipment locker, said Bobby Duke, the primary driver for LSU 1. Duke is a retired truck driver with almost 34 years of experience working with lines such as Consolidated Freightways and Red Ball. Brett Waguespack is the secondary driver. Duke has been driving LSU 1 since the university acquired it in He got the job based on his experience and his friendship with Jeff Boss, LSU s late longtime equipment manager. It s something to drive, it s just different, Duke said. You have people running up besides you taking pictures. It s just fans having a good time, but you ve got to watch people and be real careful. The amount of miles LSU 1 gets driven is dependent upon the Tigers football schedule. While it mainly visits Southeastern Conference schools, the truck has traveled cross-country, like when LSU opened the 2009 season in Seattle against the University of Washington. That 44-hour trip was tracked by a Facebook page and by the LSU Athletic Department. Duke said there have been incidents of vandalism on the truck from opposing fans. But he wouldn t say at which schools this happened. You find nicks and stuff on the truck, he said. Several other Southeastern Conference schools have equipment trucks, including Alabama, Auburn and Florida. Like LSU 1, those vehicles are outfitted with eye-catching graphics that promote the football team and its rich history. You would be shocked at how well we all get along, said Duke. It costs the athletic department about $18,000 a year to operate and maintain LSU 1, Stringfellow said. The truck is like any other distance carrier, and is impacted by hours of service regulation and subject to inspections. A local distributor handles cleaning LSU 1. They take a lot of pride in the cleanliness of the truck, Stringfellow said. When the truck isn t in service, it s warehoused at the Football Operations building. Generally, it isn t used for other sports. That s because of the sheer volume of equipment a college football team needs, compared to other sports like basketball or baseball, which have fewer players and less gear. Generally LSU tries to have the truck arrive at a stadium about 6 hours ahead of the Tiger football team. It takes about 2 hours to load and unload the truck, Stringfellow said. For some big bowl games, when the team needs to be in a city for several days of practices and events, LSU will send a second truck. One of the worst moments happened when Duke was coming back from the LSU-West Virginia game in I was behind a vehicle that was moving a trailer-load of stuff stacked high, he said. They put a tire and a rim back there on top of the stuff. When they hit some bumps in the road, the tire bumped off, hit the ground and came right back up and hit the top of the cab. The tire knocked LSU 1 s radio out and landed in the sleeper. Luckily, it didn t knock out the windshield glass, so Duke was able to bring the truck in. So far, knock wood, that s been about the most exciting time I ve had with it. Duke said he makes sure to train the other drivers who handle LSU 1 to be careful. It s like flying an airplane. You ve got to watch it every second. K Photo by Chris Parent, LSU Athletics trucking for the tigers Q By Open Timothy Road Boone 7

10 BUILT FOR THE WORK YOU DO! The sales team is very knowledgable. BUILT FOR YOUR BUSINESS For Laurie Doiron, owner of Ag Logistics, in White Castle, Louisiana, hauling sugar is her business. The reliability and uptime of her truck fleet is a vital part of keeping her young company profi table. During harvest season, Ag Logistics hauls sugar cane for 100 days straight, 24 hours a day. Todd Doiron, Operations Manager, purchased their fi rst set of Cat CT660 Vocational Trucks in early 2014, and noted, I have not asked a question that I have not got an answer for. We steered toward Cat trucks because of the service. BUILT TO HELP YOU GET THERE In Doiron s line of work, communication is key and helps to make their business a success. Doiron says he enjoys working with Louisiana Cat because they hold true to their word. Ag Logistics hauls 1.7 million tons of sugar cane during harvest season, even if one of the trucks break. The service department at Louisiana Cat communicates back and forth with us and that helps us continue to be able to do our job. If a problem arises with the trucks, Doiron is confi dent that the Louisiana Cat service department can fi x the problem right away. We have 10 more on order right now. BUILT TO DELIVER Ag Logistics currently owns three Cat CT660 Vocational Trucks. Doiron has been so impressed with the trucks, adding that they re running well and we currently have 10 more on order right now. Discover for yourself what Laurie and Todd Doiron already know... Louisiana Cat not only offers the best truck in the business, but stands behind it with reliable and unrivaled dealer support, factory trained technicians and excellent parts availability. Give us a call today to learn how the Cat CT660 Vocational Truck can benefit your business. Alexandria Bossier City Lafayette Lake Charles Monroe Prairieville Reserve Caterpillar. All Rights Reserved. CAT, CATERPILLAR, BUILT FOR IT, their respective logos, Caterpillar Yellow, the Power Edge trade dress as well as corporate and product identity used herein, are trademarks of Caterpillar and may not be used without permission. 8 Open Road Q ag logistics full page.indd 1 8/18/ :09:37 AM

11 Louisiana collects $630 million per year in Federal highway dollars and 20-cents from each gallon of gasoline purchased for its own transportation fund. But the state is spending only $27 million a year on highway preservation, well below the $70 million or so spent in recent years. In the next 30 years, Louisiana's economic health and quality of life may be at risk because of transportation funding challenges. What should the state's transportation priorities be? Should the current state gasoline sales tax be increased? Or is it time for a new funding stream at both the state and federal level? LMTA was honored to be asked to participate in the Louisiana Public Square, a Louisiana Public Broadcasting feature that looked for answers on "Down the Road: Our Transportation Future". The forum aired Wednesday, August 27th. Panelists included: Senator Robert Adley, R-Benton; Senate Transportation Committee Dr. Kam Movassaghi, former DOTD Secretary and President of Fenstermaker & Associates Representative Karen St. Germain, D-Plaquemine; House Transportation, Committee Rachel DiResto, Executive V.P. of the Center for Planning Excellence The program also included interviews with Sherri LeBas, Secretary of the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development (DOTD); Representative Karen St. Germain, D-Plaquemine; Ascension Parish President Tommy Martinez; Boo Thomas, President of the Center for Planning Excellence, and Cathy Gautreaux with the Louisiana Motor Transport Association. Beth Courtney, LPB CEO, and Robert Travis Scott, President of the Public Affairs Research Council of Louisiana moderated the discussion. LMTA President Greg Morrison, Quality Transport, Bossier City; LMTA Leadership Council President Mitch Guillot, Triple G Express, Jefferson and LMTA Vice President- At Large Judy Smart, Roadrunner Towing & Recovery actively participated in the audience representing LMTA and the trucking industry For more information visit K Q Open Road 9

12 0 p 0 n n 0 0 p p p n P n L P P P P L L L P P P

13 T T 0 T c T c 9 : p c c E E E E p p 9 9 p T T : T T : : Q Open Road 11

14 34 Hour Restart hos changes get bipartisan Senate support By Timothy Boone An amendment that would suspend a controversial new regulation that mandates when truck drivers should get rest has been approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee, thanks to the bipartisan efforts of Senators Mary Landrieu (D-Louisiana) and Susan Collins (R-Maine). The committee voted 21-9 to adopt Collins amendment to the funding bill for the Departments of Transportation and Housing Development, which would rescind a July 2013 provision that required hours of service restart include two overnight rest periods between 1 a.m. and 5 a.m. The HOS restart would be suspended for one year while the Department of Transportation conducted a study on the effectiveness of the regulations. Collins has said the new rules were put in place without adequate data to back them up. The one year limit is a function of the fact that the bill covers the federal DOT budget for one year. Chris Spear, Vice President and chief of legislative affairs for the American Trucking Associations, said the HOS regulations are clearly not only a trucking issue, but a supply chain issue. The new regulations have forced drivers off of highways during late night hours, when traffic is minimal, and on the roads during the prime times for commuter activity. That s caused more traffic congestion and increased emissions. The supply chain is feeling the impact, carriers are feeling the impact, Spear said. If they rely on logistics, they re feeling the impact of this inflexible requirement. Spear said truck drivers are like hospital emergency room workers and other people who are used to working overnights. That s when they work, when it s the best time to drive, he said. It s more productive for them to get the job done in that time. The ATA lobbied Congress on behalf of members of all sizes, large and small, who have been affected by the regulation. This is affecting customers such as grocers, beverage wholesalers, timber and steel, he said. This is a member-driven issue. While Congress has been subject to bitter partisan bickering, support for Collins amendment crossed party lines. Landrieu was one of seven Democrats to vote for the bill. I honestly believe that what Senator Collins and I and others are trying to do is going to make the situation that is very unsafe now safer, not less safe, Landrieu said during floor debate on the issue. She accused the federal Department of Transportation of government overreach to a point where it is almost visceral. We want our highways to be safe, we want our truckers rested, we really don t like the crowding on our highways, but it s going a little too far when the federal government starts mandating when workers should sleep, Landrieu said. We just can t go there. Spear said Landrieu was very helpful by injecting common sense to the rulemaking process. She did a fantastic job of explaining this and pointing out that we need to go back to the drawing board, he said. Having this pass a Democrat-led Senate sends a pretty powerful message that this is not a good rule. While the Collins amendment had the backing of Democrats and Republicans, the funding bill it is attached to has fallen victim to the partisan spending impasse on Capitol Hill. The bill has not yet passed, Spear said. Action will probably be taken on the spending bill once the midterm elections are over with. No matter what happens, Spear said the ATA was pleased with the outcome on the amendment. The future outcome of this is dependant upon politics, which drives a lot of people crazy, he said. But the environment we are in, our job is to help association members find a way to get wins. K

15 what is your bmi? CDL Medical Certificate Debacle By Ted Griggs Trucker Troy Lanegrasse s unemployment problems started with his new job. The Thibodaux resident had a valid commercial driver s license and medical card, but his new employer, Acme Truck Line, requires its drivers to get a new physical. Acme sent Lanegrasse to a doctor who promptly denied the trucker s medical certificate because his body mass index was over 34. The doctor told Lanegrasse he would have to undergo a sleep study to determine whether he suffered from sleep apnea. That was in June. A lengthy waiting list for the sleep lab meant Lanegrasse didn t get tested until August. He has to use a Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) machine for a month before he can retake his physical. If we re lucky my husband can go back to work in October, said Julie Lanegrasse, a secretary for Arabie Trucking Services LLC in Thibodaux. If you re used to two incomes coming in and you re down to one, that s kind of rough. The Lanegrasses are among many trucking families suffering thanks to confusion over the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration s rules for medical exams. Some medical examiners are apparently enforcing a proposed rule the agency issued in The proposed rule, which FMCSA withdrew almost immediately, would have required drivers to undergo sleep testing if they had a BMI of 35 or higher or a 17-inch neck, 15.5 inches for women. According to the Louisiana Motor Transport Association, some medical examiners have added a new sleep study trigger: weighing 250 pounds or more. The trucking industry says there has been no conclusive study supporting those criteria. The industry believes the current disqualification problem lies with the medical examiners training. Doctors are being taught to subjectively apply rules that have yet to be put in place. Q Open Road 13

16 Dr. Danielle D. Angeron, a certified medical examiner in Houma, said the FMCSA handbook has around 80 pages of examination guidelines. What the handbook doesn t contain are those particular triggers 17-inch neck, BMI of 35 or more, or weight of 250 pounds for sleep apnea testing. The sleep tests are required only if an examiner thinks them necessary, Angeron said. It s the same CDL physical that they ve been having, Angeron said. However, there are some differences. FMCSA now requires doctors go through certification. Angeron took a 12-hour online class and then had to pass a test. She took hers in New Orleans. FMCSA also specifies which type of medical conditions have a waiting period and how long that driver can be certified with that condition. If a driver is diagnosed with sleep apnea, he would have to bring in a printout from his CPAP machine showing: He was using the machine. He had no symptoms of daytime sleepiness since at least the last reading. He had been on the machine for at least a month. Angeron said some patients have had to have sleep tests but there haven t been that many. But Arabie Trucking Chief Executive Officer Sandy J. Arabie said the impact on drivers and carriers could be enormous. It s going to affect a lot of companies dramatically, including us, once our drivers start coming up for renewal, Arabie said. I can guarantee you out of the 30-something drivers I ve got, I probably only have maybe five drivers that will be able to pass this between body mass index and neck size. Doctors are being taught to subjectively apply rules that have yet to be put in place. The financial costs to truckers are also very high, Arabie said. A sleep test and a CPAP machine, plus the loss of income, could easily run to $5, Open Road Q3 2014

17 Julie Lanegrasse said those kinds of expenses are crippling to trucking families, who don t make that much money. Most drivers health insurance won t cover those expenses, which mean almost all of that money will be out-ofpocket. It baffles me that they (federal regulators) put this process in place with no answers or remedies on the who, what, when or where about who s going to pay for this, Arabie said. Stephen F. Campbell, Commissioner of the Louisiana Office of Motor Vehicles, said the state has no control over the federal rules or the physicians doing the exams. In the end, we have to accept their medical findings, Campbell said. The OMV can t overturn doctors opinions. Campbell said federal regulators have a different opinion than the trucking industry when it comes to whether the 17-inch neck/35 BMI/250-pound criteria support a diagnosis of sleep apnea. A 2014 study conducted by the University of Pennsylvania and sponsored by the FMCSA and the American Transportation Research Institute, the not-for-profit research group of the American Trucking Associations, found that 28 percent of commercial truck drivers have mild to severe sleep apnea. Campbell said he realizes it s expensive to get a sleep test and to buy a CPAP machine, and that some truckers don t have insurance that will cover those expenses. But we and they are required to follow federal regulations, Campbell said. The question for drivers and truckers remains what to do when certified medical examiners are enforcing regulations that don t exist? The ATA and the LMTA are asking Congress to provide some clarity. LMTA Executive Director Cathy Gautreaux said the industry is in something of a stalemate because the fix will have to come from Washington, D.C. Arabie said right now nobody has the answers, and that s a frightening prospect for carriers and drivers. You ve got a whole bunch of people in the trucking business that don t know this train wreck is coming down the pike, Arabie said. K DataQ Challenges? we re pulling for you Contact us at dlp@driverslegalplan.com ( ) to discuss how we can have our attorney file your DataQ challenges for FREE. DefenD your company and your Drivers with a legal Defense plan DesigneD By and for truckers. Drivers Legal Call Jim C. Klepper, Esq Q Open Road 15

18 Solutions Provider to the Transportation Industry #1 in north AmericA! Thank you for making Southern Tire Mart North America s largest independent commercial tire dealer. From America s quality brands to comprehensive maintenance programs to 24/7 roadside assistance we deliver best in class service! We have over 60 stores in 9 states and a team committed to meeting your needs, and saving you time and money. 16 Open Road Q CALL 877.STM.TIRE

19 Guest Writer Elisabeth Barna, ATA The American Trucking Association, along with ACT I, the state trucking associations and other transport professionals launched an industry-wide image movement Trucking Moves America Forward to work towards improving the way people view our essential and strong industry. Trucking Moves America Forward is uniting the industry to heighten trucking s visibility, economic necessity and vibrancy, as well as build pride among the 7 million workers, including 3.2 million professional truck drivers. The long-term movement will shape a positive image for the industry and build the political and grass-root support necessary to strengthen and build a better future. This initiative is bringing together all facets of the motor transport profession to engage and inform policy makers, industry professionals, the media and the public to educate on how trucking contributes to the nation s economy, infrastructure, and the everyday lives of all Americans. This is also an internal initiative to honor the pride we have for the men and women in our business who make it all possible. Education is key to the success of Trucking Moves America Forward. A better educated policy maker should make an educated decision when voting on laws and regulations that affect trucking. A better educated reporter should file a fair and balanced news story when reporting on our vital industry. A better educated motorist should change their driving behaviors when putting their keys in the ignition. A trucking industry worker should take pride in their job and their industry. Whether improving the image of the industry or saving lives, this new movement has already seen positive results in both areas. We are putting a human face behind the wheel, under the hood, at the fuel pump and in the office. We are telling our stories, whether a third generation industry executive, a young worker who followed their dream to drive or maintain a big truck, an owner, who as a little boy counted the coins in the terminal s soda machine or one of the 5.4% percent of women drivers. Your stories all make up this wonderful and passionate industry we call trucking. Join the movement now so that we can tell a powerful story about trucking in America. Trucking Does Move America Forward! Visit K Q Open Road 17

20 By Steve Wheeler 18 Open Road Q LMTA members made their annual Call on Washington the week of September 8, giving Louisiana s congressional delegation positions and ideas on issues affecting the trucking industry. The group that made the trip to Washington D.C. this year was very large 16 in all and each of the LMTA members hit the ground running.

21 The group first met with the American Trucking Association for briefings on industry issues, then met face-toface with both Louisiana Senators Mary Landrieu and David Vitter as well as U.S. Representatives John Fleming and House Majority Whip Steve Scalise. The Callers on Washington also met with congressional staffers when congressmen weren t available to meet in person. Key issues discussed this year included hours of service, sleep apnea and the Highway Trust Fund. One business owner who has Called on Washington more than once is Glen Guillot, co-owner of Southeastern Motor Freight and Triple G Express in Jefferson. Guillot said that the Call on Washington is designed as a working meeting to give LMTA members a chance to actually present their positions on trucking industry issues. Guillot said he went again this year because he had a few points to make. We go at least once a year, Guillot said. We go see our representatives on their own turf. We re not going just to listen, we re going to tell them what we think, he said. I m going to let them know what I want. Guillot said grass roots efforts like the Call on Washington make it easier for national lobbying groups like the ATA to effectively do their jobs. We re being shot at all day, every day in the trucking industry, Guillot said. While the ATA and the LMTA don t always agree on every issue, they are aligned 95 percent of the time and can present a potent lobbying force, he said. After all, Guillot added, if an industry doesn t look out for its own interests, who will? John Austin agrees wholeheartedly. This trip was Austin s second Call on Washington, and he said he plans to make The Call a habit. It s too important not to make it a habit, he said. You ve got to be proactive. You ve got to stay on top of things. We re there fighting for the common interests of our industry, Austin said. Austin, President of Bengal Transportation Services in Geismar and LMTA Second Vice President, said the meetings with lawmakers in Washington were productive, especially the discussions with Vitter. I really liked what he had to say, Austin said. Terry Warren, with Aeropres Corporation in Sibley and LMTA First Vice President, also heeded this year s Call on Washington. Warren, a firsttime Caller, said she didn t have a political bone in her body before the trip, but admits the experience has now made her much more interested. I was very impressed, she said. I thought it was great. Warren said she had been to Washington with school groups in the past, but this trip was different. She said she wasn t sure at first how valuable the meetings with lawmakers would be, But when we actually met with everyone they seemed to be very interested and willing to help us. It was very educational for me, Warren said. I ve never been a political person. I m much more interested in it now. It s much more than just a political jaunt, said LMTA Executive Director Cathy Gautreaux. We actually discuss current issues impacting the trucking industry today and request the help of our Congressional delegation to intercede on our behalf. Gautreaux described how the LMTA group requested that each member of the Louisiana delegation sign a letter to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) directing them to abide by a law passed a year ago that mandated a rulemaking before requiring sleep apnea testing for CDL medical certification. The fact that drivers are losing their jobs every day because the Certified Medical Examiners are requiring sleep apnea tests is the direct result of FMCSA s blatant disregard for a federal law. Since Congressional action appears to be the only way to stop this abuse of authority, the trucking industry desperately needs our representatives in Washington, D.C. to step up and stop this illegal procedure before more drivers lose their jobs. And, sitting down with them in their offices in D.C. really brings this message home. K Q Open Road 19

22 I-12 Road Construction By Diana Pietrogallo A major east-west route for commerce between Baton Rouge and the neighboring state of Mississippi is about to undergo several major construction projects, all of which require the trucking industry to be aware and begin planning for ways to mitigate the impact on freight movements. The Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development is about to let three contracts for major highway projects in October or November that will certainly impact commercial vehicles during phases of the two-year construction time frame. All of the projects have been in the works for about four years, and it just so happens they all are getting ready at the same time, according to Allison Schilling, district administrator with DOTD. Normally whenever the agency lets a project, it anticipates the project will start about three to four months after, which in this case will be sometime in the first quarter of The largest project, named French Branch, is a pavement replacement project in Slidell that includes the I-10/12/59 interchange and I-10 East to the West Pearl River Bridge by the Slidell Welcome Center. Schilling describes the expansiveness of the project, explaining, Construction will stretch down toward New Orleans and the Twin I-12 and US 51-B 20 Open Road Q3 2014

23 Spans; it ll go in that six-lane section and pick up where the previous project left off. And it ll go up north on 59 a little ways not all the way to Military Road, but a little north of the interchange. In most cases, DOTD would do an overlay and just break up the existing concrete and resurface it with asphalt. In this case, since there are so many ramps that go over and under and around, we re going to completely replace the pavement. It s a $40 million-plus job, says Schilling. This corridor is vital for east/west travel through the state as well as into New Orleans and the Mississippi Gulf Coast region; therefore, communication and a partnership with the freight industry are going to be extremely important to mitigate delays and congestion through the work zones. The average daily number of vehicles traversing I-10 in the vicinity of this interchange is 67,745. What will complicate traffic are the seven locations with lateral confined spaces places where the road goes under a bridge and there are no shoulders. In order to complete work in those areas in the quickest way possible, DOTD is going to allow some extended weekend lane closures but will maintain one lane open at all times. The work will be done over 14 weekends of the 700-day contract, taking into account that both sides must be done and giving the contractor one day per lane. Normally we would do some of the work at night. We are going to be allowing lane closures from Friday afternoon until Monday morning and telling the contractor, You ve got this many hours to get in there, get the pavement out, and get the new pavement in and open back up to traffic. We will have very, very, very stiff penalties in the contract that if they don t, it s going to cost them thousands of dollars an hour. We are very serious about this, stresses Schilling. It is anticipated that there will be some significant delays and backups, so she is being proactive in getting the word out. It s not known when the work will be scheduled until a contract is in place and they can begin to determine when the lane closures will cause the least impact, but DOTD plans to issue advance notifications beyond the seven-day notice required. At the same time this project is under construction, there will also be another I-12 widening project underway in St. Tammany Parish. It will start at US-11 working westward to Airport Road/Northshore Boulevard. It will be similar to the ones currently underway in Livingston Parish, and some of the same methods implemented there will be used to minimize crashes and identify traffic situations before they get bad. In October, DOTD has scheduled to let the project in Hammond at the US-51 Business interchange at the location of the Petro and Pilot Travel Center truck stops. Work will not be done on the interstate but will take place on the ramps and once you exit onto US 51 Business. The existing four-lane configuration will be reduced to one lane in each direction during construction. Work will take about 18 months to complete. communication and a partnership with the freight industry are going to be extremely important to mitigate delays and congestion through the work zones. The project calls for a series of three roundabouts with a median down the middle so there will be no left turns allowed. Drivers will have to make a right turn and negotiate the roundabouts to make a U-turn to get back to the interstate. We did a study and we looked at all kinds of alternatives. This is the one the local administration wanted; this is the one we thought was the best alternative, says Schilling. The average daily traffic on I-12 is 54,200; on US 51-B it is 22,300. The US 51-B corridor services a hospital, a university, two large truck stops, and a shopping mall. It also serves as the connection for Ponchatoula to I-12 from the south and downtown Hammond to I-12 from the north. So the improvements will greatly enhance the mobility of this corridor. There are four separate construction zones currently on I-12 in Livingston Parish. One is a widening project from I-12 in Walker to just west of Satsuma, and there is one project that has three separate sites on it: one just east of Satsuma, one that s just west of Holden and one just west of Albany. There crews have been replacing the approach slabs on several of the bridges and widening the bridges on the inside to maintain traffic when the approach slabs are replaced. Thankfully, these should be wrapping up as the other road projects begin. Q Open Road 21

24 A very valuable lesson was learned with the Livingston projects that will be crucial for the next round of construction zones. When the work zones were first implemented, there were a lot of issues with traffic cars trying to weave in and out of commercial vehicles, people driving entirely too fast, and there was a very narrow shoulder on the outside that was just two-foot wide. There were a lot of commercial vehicles overturning because they were dropping tires off the outside shoulder. A plan was affected to narrow the lanes and widen the outside shoulder back to four feet. The speed limit was reduced in all of the zones, and commercial vehicles were required to travel in the right outside lane. There was also air enforcement and additional police presence through the work zones. All of those things together have really helped the traffic. There has not been one crash with a commercial vehicle and only minor crashes with passenger cars. It was a disaster area for about three months. Every time we turned around there were wrecks in the construction zones, commercial vehicles were overturned, and backups stretched for miles and miles. It s significantly improved. It was a joint effort between a lot of agencies and it worked. I think the best decision that was made in all of it was to go back to that four-foot outside shoulder, says Schilling. It gave the commercial vehicles a little more room once they went over that white edge line to recover before they dropped a tire and turned over. Due to the significance of these projects, there will be a presentation by Louisiana State Police and Louisiana The speed limit was reduced in all of the zones, and commercial vehicles were required to travel in the right outside lane...there has not been one crash with a commercial vehicle and only minor crashes with passenger cars. Department of Transportation and Development on the I-12 construction zone incident management practices and the projects soon to begin at the LMTA Fall Transportation Conference in Baton Rouge on November K 22 Open Road Q3 2014

25 Hole Sponsors Aeropres Corporation, Sibley Agway Systems, Inc., Baton Rouge Arabie Trucking Service, LLC, Thibodaux Ater Warehouse, Inc., Ferriday Breazeale, Sachse & Wilson, Baton Rouge Carrier Transicold South, St. Rose Comdata Network, Inc., Brentwood, TN Cummins Mid South, Jackson, MS Dedicated Transportation, LLC, Lafayette Dupre` Logistics, LLC, Lafayette Electronic Funds Source, LLC, Arlington, TN Frisard s Trucking Company, Gramercy Hay Brothers, Inc., Lake Charles Lake City Trucking, Lake Charles Marchand Construction, Inc., Port Allen Parish Truck Sales, Inc., St. Rose Peterbilt of Louisiana, Baton Rouge Plains Marketing, LP, Houston, TX Quality Transport, Inc., Baton Rouge Retif Oil & Fuel, LLC, New Orleans SevenOaks Capital Associates, Baton Rouge Sumrall s Hyundai Translead Trailers, Hammond Timmons Truck Center, Baton Rouge Tri State Refrigeration, Inc., Baton Rouge United Engines, LLC, Shreveport DOOR PRIZE SPONSORS 4-D Partners, LLC Aeropres Corporation Aparicio, Walker & Seeling, Inc. Arabie Trucking Service, LLC C & S Wholesale Grocers Dedicated Transportation Doris Hay & Judy Smart Dupre` Logistics, LLC Frisard s Trucking Company, Inc. Marriott Grand Hotel Point Clear Resort & Spa Gulf Coast Business Credit L & B Transport, LLC Lake City Trucking, Lake Charles Larry Verret Trucking Ouchita Fertilizer Division Peterbilt of Louisiana Quality Transport, Inc. RLC Trucking, LLC RoadRunner Towing & Recovery Royal Sonesta Hotel Sandestin Golf and Beach Resort SevenOaks Capitol Associates, LLC Southern Information Services Timmons Truck Center Triple G Express, Inc. Waste Management of LA, Inc. Convention Sponsors Platinum Sponsors Cobbs, Allen & Hall of Louisiana, Inc. Cummins Mid South Louisiana CAT RoadRunner Towing & Recovery Ryder System, Inc. Gold Sponsors Bengal Transportation Services, LLC Breazeale,Sachse & Wilson, LLP Gulf Coast Business Credit Gulf South Insurance Agency Plains Marketing, LP Port of New Orleans Preferred Materials, Inc. United Vision Logistics Silver Sponsors Louisiana Tank, Inc. Omnitracs, Inc. Quality Transport, Inc. USI Southwest Annual Sponsors Platinum Sponsors Help, Inc. Gold Sponsors Preferred Materials, Inc. Regions Insurance, Inc. RoadRunner Towing & Recovery, Inc. Silver Sponsors FedEx Corporation Grammer Industries UPS Gulf Coast Business Credit Peoplenet Communications Southern Tire Mart Truck Tire Centers United Vision Logistics Bronze Sponsors Aeropres Corporation All Scrap Metals BancorpSouth Equipment Finance Bengal Transportation Services Bridgestone Bandag Tire Solutions Daimler Trucks North America & Martin Truck Center Dupre` Logistics Electronic Funds Source Ergon Trucking Frisard s Trucking GE Capital Transportation Finance J.J. Keller & Associates Lake City Trucking Pilot Flying J Quality Transport Service Transport Co. SevenOaks Capital Associates Triple G Express Triumph Business Capitol Wal-mart Stores Q Open Road 23

26 24 Open Road Q3 2014

27 July 31 August 2 Marriott Grand Hotel Point Clear, AL Q Open Road 25

28 26 Open Road Q3 2014

29 July 31 August 2 Marriott Grand Hotel Point Clear, AL Q Open Road 27

30 Uneven Playing Field Inconsistent State CSA Enforcement 28 Open Road Q By Ted GriggsA national initiative designed to improve motor carrier safety through uniform safety metrics isn t working as regulators planned because states decide the intensity and focus of enforcing the regulations. The finding is part of a recently released study on the Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA) program by the American Transport Research Institute (ATRI), the trucking industry s not-for-profit research arm. This validates what we ve heard anecdotally from a number of carriers, and that is that these (states ) differing priorities have a very real, quantifiable impact on carrier and driver CSA scores, said Rebecca Brewster, President and Chief Operating Officer of ATRI. The scores have nothing to do with the carrier s safety performance. It s just a matter of where they run their miles and what those states priorities are. Each state has a reason for its enforcement focus. In many cases enforcement is based on the state s crash experience. Some states focus on specific violations because research, such as ATRI s crash-predictors study, shows those violations have a higher relationship to crash risk. Other states may target seat-belt use because the state has designed and funded a marketing campaign to improve that. So the different approaches are understandable, Brewster said. The problem is the 50 states/50 enforcement-strategies approach undermines the CSA program, she said. A na-

31 SA? al source. time there ile CSA does everyone s w: w FMCSA sa.dot.gov. ns. r vehicles in the way. r; keep ogram v. p-to-date sa.dot.gov. ATTENTION A WAY TO MEASURE SAFETY SMART DRIVERS KNOW THE FACTS tional standardized safety assessment program can t provide truly uniform scoring for carriers and drivers because each state has different priorities and issues violations at a different rate. Evaluating the Impact of Commercial Motor Vehicle Enforcement Disparities on Carrier Safety Performance looks at the five publicly available Behavior Analysis and Safety Improvement Categories, or BASICs. The study measures how each state focuses on a specific category. For example, for the unsafe driving BASIC, Massachusetts issues the most violations while Mississippi issued the fewest. This means a carrier who operates all its mileage in Massachusetts will have a much higher unsafe driver BASIC driving score than a carrier that operates all its mileage in Mississippi, Brewster said. The state or states where a carrier operates and those states enforcement priorities determine the BASIC score more than the carrier s actual safety performance. A carrier s safety performance or a driver s safety performance doesn t necessarily change from state to state. Your vehicle doesn t suddenly fall apart when you cross into Ohio from Indiana, Brewster said. But if you look at the violation experience from one state to the next, you may see a very different measure because of what that state is looking at in terms of their violation priorities. The study tackles an issue the trucking industry has wrestled with since the CSA regulations came out in ATRI s Research Advisory Committee, an independent group of industry stakeholders that includes motor carriers, industry suppliers, law enforcement, driver groups, and state and federal officials, identified enforcement disparities as the top research issue for However, critics say the study raises questions about how well the industry research group understands the CSA program. They say that the ATRI study incorrectly characterizes redflag violations, which are not necessarily crash-causing violations but driver violations that warrant additional investigation. In addition, ATRI says both drivers and carriers receive Behavioral Analysis and Safety Improvement Category scores, but Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration s public Safety Measurement System scores apply only to carriers. Safety is our top priority, and analysis shows that CSA s Safety Measurement System is effectively working to target high-risk carriers for interventions including more frequent inspections, warning letters and comprehensive investigations, said FMCSA spokesman Duane De- Bruyne. FMCSA officials say the program has cut violations-perroadside inspection by 14 percent and driver violations by 17 percent. The agency will continue to consider options to enhance this important tool and work with law enforcement to analyze and improve the quality and consistency of safety data nationwide, DeBruyne said. The American Trucking Associations has been a major critic of the enforcement of the CSA program. The industry group said it has taken pains to point out the program s positive results. Those include increasing carriers and drivers focus on safety, as well as shifting FMCSA s The scores have nothing to do with the carrier s safety performance. It s just a matter of where they run their miles and what those states priorities are. Q Open Road 29

32 approach from a paperwork-centered program to one that s performance-based. The problem is the 50 states/50 enforcementstrategies approach undermines the CSA program... because each state has different priorities and issues violations at a different rate. But the trucking industry worries that carrier data posted on the FMCSA website is being misunderstood or misconstrued. FMCSA officials have admitted some safe companies have high scores and some unsafe companies have low scores. But the federal agency says that overall the program is doing what it should: improving safety. However, in late August, the trucking associations called on FMCSA to remove the CSA fleet-monitoring-system scores from the agency s website. The trucking industry group cited research from the Government Accountability Office that says FMCSA lacks sufficient safety performance information on most motor carriers to make reliable comparisons to other carriers. This lack of data creates the likelihood that many SMS scores do not represent an accurate or precise safety assessment for a carrier, according to the GAO. Brewster said the cost of the uneven safety playing field, for drivers or carriers, is difficult to quantify. For the Most Reliable Truck and Trailer Refrigeration Equipment, Service and Rentals. We ve got you covered... The costs don t come from just the violations but from the potential business impacts. Customers may be making business determinations based on the publicly available BASIC scores, Brewster said. But those scores may not accurately represent a carrier s safety performance because the BASICS don t necessarily work. Visit our newest location: 190 Park Place St. Rose, LA ph: Mahaffey Road Port Allen, LA ph: Daniel Payne Drive Birmingham, AL ph: Forest Parkway Atlanta, GA ph: Cherry St. Knoxville, TN ph: Rangeline Road Theodore, AL ph: Cummings Road Chattanooga, TN ph: Longwood Drive Richmond Hill, GA ph: Carrier Corporation A member of the United Technologies Corporation family. Stock Symbol UTX. Two of the BASICS, for example, don t accurately predict crash risk, and BASIC scores are affected by the states in which carriers operate and not necessarily safety performance. Those basic scores are not telling an accurate story about your safety performance. But potential customers are making determinations on whether or not to use your fleet based on those publicly available basics, Brewster said. Naturally you could see an additional financial impact. 30 Open Road Q3 2014