Sandberg webcast previews business under CSA

Sept. 15, 2010
Annette Sandberg, a former Administrator of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, gave fleets a clear look ahead at the impact of CSA on their own operations and on the industry as a whole in a live webcast that was held on September 14. The webcast, “Keeping Your Fleet’s CSA Vehicle Maintenance Score Low,” was presented by Truckload Carriers Assn. (TCA) and Fleet Owner and sponsored by Zonar Systems

Annette Sandberg, a former Administrator of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, gave fleets a clear look ahead at the impact of CSA on their own operations and on the industry as a whole in a live webcast that was held on September 14. The webcast, “Keeping Your Fleet’s CSA Vehicle Maintenance Score Low,” was presented by Truckload Carriers Assn. (TCA) and Fleet Owner and sponsored by Zonar Systems.

Sandberg, who is now managing partner of TransSafe Consulting, LLC, began her presentation with a look at the crowded regulatory environment, including:

The challenge at hand for fleets right now, however, is to prepare for CSA. The new safety scoring system, Sandberg explained, is designed to more effectively target carriers with problems. “It allows FMCSA and States to have more tools to intervene with “potentially unsafe” carriers,” she said.

A major difference between CSA and the current SafeStat system is that CSA uses all data from the roadside to identify potential problems, Sandberg noted. “This will mean more potential enforcement against poor performing carriers. I strongly encourage any fleet that has yet to see their current CSA ratings to do so right away.”

When it comes to CSA’s Vehicle Maintenance BASIC, Sandberg urged fleets to reduce their risk of intervention by establishing tighter controls on DVIRs (driver vehicle inspection reports), periodic maintenance, and annual inspections.

“Vehicle maintenance is one of the toughest areas to track,” she said. “Many drivers consider DVIRs a nuisance and many companies do not have adequate controls to monitor pre- and post-trip inspections. Follow-through on deficiencies noted in DVIRs is often weak or non-existent as well. It is critical that carriers have a robust system to monitor all required vehicle maintenance items.”

Sandberg also reminded fleets that their new safety ratings will be available to the general public online (with the exception of the crash rating) as well as to shippers and brokers. Shippers will want to see a fleet’s CSA ratings, she said, because they can share accountability for an accident if they hire a carrier with poor CSA ratings.

It is too bad that litigation shapes the way things work, Sandberg noted, but it does. “I’ve already seen several lawsuits where shippers or brokers are being sued along with their carriers,” she said. “That is the approach plaintiffs’ attorneys are now taking.”

More than 250 people attended the live webcast and Sandberg fielded numerous questions, from how peer groups are selected for CSA to the appeal process if a carrier feels a rating is unjust.

In response to a question about the impact of CSA on freight rates, she said that while increasing safety is a good goal, the supply chain would definitely feel the impact of the new procedure. Sandberg said that will be expressed in terms of decreased capacity, higher rates and increased costs for goods and materials.

The complete webcast, including the Q&A portion of the program, is now available online at no charge. Link to it from the Truckload Carriers Association website, the Zonar Website, or Fleet Owner’s website, or click on this link.

About the Author

Wendy Leavitt

Wendy Leavitt joined Fleet Owner in 1998 after serving as editor-in-chief of Trucking Technology magazine for four years.

She began her career in the trucking industry at Kenworth Truck Company in Kirkland, WA where she spent 16 years—the first five years as safety and compliance manager in the engineering department and more than a decade as the company’s manager of advertising and public relations. She has also worked as a book editor, guided authors through the self-publishing process and operated her own marketing and public relations business.

Wendy has a Masters Degree in English and Art History from Western Washington University, where, as a graduate student, she also taught writing.  

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