Idealease Safety Bulletin 5/1/20 - Truck Drivers are Unsung Heroes of COVID-19
The May 1st edition of our weekly Idealease Safety Bulletin has arrived! Important safety tips, updates and reminders delivered to you each week, courtesy of Idealease Truck Leasing and Rental.
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In summary, this week's bulletin provides important info on the following topics:
1. Truck Drivers are Unsung Heroes of the COVID-19 Pandemic
Where would we be in this pandemic if trucks stopped delivering goods and services the first week of March?
Now is the time to show drivers just how valuable they are and recognize them for their performance in keeping the supply chain intact by providing the goods and services to society daily.
There are many ways of recognizing employees.
Micro recognition, also known as day-to-day recognition, is more 
frequent and ongoing. This may include a note on a steering wheel, card in their mailbox, a text, communication over your ELD/Telematics, or anything that you can do to recognize employees quickly and quite easily. Micro recognition is the perfect way to support organizational values on a regular basis and make employees feel valued.
Thank You Drivers for All You Do.
Stay Safe!
2. Ontario Canada Provincial Government Announce New App for Drivers During COVID-19
This free new app will provide truck drivers with immediate access to information they need to stay safe, fed and rested while delivering essential goods across the province amid the COVID-19 outbreak. This new Ontario 511 app provides images from over 600 cameras and includes up-to-date information on highway construction, collisions, and road closures. It also identifies open rest areas, locations throughout the province that offer food and fuel, an easy to use map view, and features a drive mode that provides hands free audio alerts.
The Ontario 511 app, which is now available for free on the App Store and Google Play, aims to provide drivers with critical information so they can better plan their routes to ensure that they are travelling safely and efficiently across the province. Each day, the app is updated by adding more places where truck drivers may safely stop and rest across the province.
View more information on this new driver app in a press release.
3. FMCSA Updates Website Materials on the Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse. Visit FMCSA clearinghouse webpage at https://clearinghouse.fmcsa.dot.gov/
The following resources have been added for motor carrier employers:
- How to designate your Consortium/Third Party Administrator;
- How to access your query history as an employer; and
- How to report Return to Duty information on drivers.
For Consortia/Third Party Administrators, the FMCSA added:
For drivers:
- Submitting a Petition for Data Review.
- The agency noted that drivers may not use the petition process to challenge the accuracy of test results or refusals. The petition process may only be used to challenge the accuracy of data in driver record; actual knowledge that a violation did not result in a conviction; actual knowledge that a violation did not comply with reporting requirements; or a refusal to test violation did not comply with reporting requirements.
FMCSA Proposes to Remove CDL Privileges for Unresolved FMCSA Drug and Alcohol Testing Violations
Under a newly proposed rule, state driver’s licensing agencies (SDLAs) would be prohibited from issuing, renewing, upgrading, or transferring a CDL or commercial learner’s permit (CLP) for individuals subject to return-to-duty (RTD) requirements after a testing violation.
Testing rules prohibit CDL drivers with violations under Part 382 from operating a commercial motor vehicle (CMV) until specific steps in the RTD process are completed. The proposed rule ties the RTD status appearing in the Clearinghouse with CDL privileges.
Checking for and Acting on Violations
All states would be required to check the Clearinghouse for restrictions when a driver applies for, transfers, upgrades, or renews a CDL or CLP.
The FMCSA also wants states to take action against drivers who are not due to have any contact with the SDLA. The proposal suggests two models SDLAs can use to obtain information from the Clearinghouse:
1. Data pull. An SDLA could choose a schedule of its own making to check Clearinghouse data on its current CDL and CLP holders. The state could grab the data on an annual basis, for instance.
2. Data push. This model “pushes” new data to the SDLA whenever information is added to the Clearinghouse about one of its CDL drivers who has committed a testing violation. This is the FMCSA’s preferred option.
Whether using a push or pull model, the proposed rule requires that the state agency disqualify the driver until he or she provides proof of a completed RTD process.
DUIs in CMVs
The proposed rule would also revise how reports of “actual knowledge” violations, based on a citation for driving under the influence (DUI) in a CDL-required CMV, would be maintained in the Clearinghouse. Employers currently report these traffic citations to the Clearinghouse. Drivers who are ultimately cleared of the DUI, however, can get the report removed from the database.
The proposal would keep the employer’s report in the database, regardless of whether the driver is ultimately convicted of the offense. The definition of “actual knowledge” in §382.107 is not contingent upon a conviction. All violations identified in Part 382, Subpart B, must be reported and retained in the Clearinghouse and would provide fairness to drivers and full disclosure to employers.
Drivers who are not convicted of the offense of DUI in a CMV could petition FMCSA to add documentary evidence of that fact to their Clearinghouse record.
How to submit comments
Interested parties may submit comments on the proposed rule using of the following methods:
- Federal eRulemaking Portal: regulations.gov.
- Mail: Docket Operations, U.S. Department of Transportation, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, West Building, Ground Floor, Room W12-140, Washington, DC 20590-0001.
- Hand delivery or courier: West Building, Ground Floor, Room W12-140, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, except federal holidays.
- Fax: (202) 493-2251.
When submitting comments, please identify them by Docket Number FMCSA-2017-0330. Comments must be received on or before June 29, 2020.
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