New Information is Updated Regularly By Mike Rone in the comment section below.
You can also visit Mikes webpage at http://www.rmrconsultants.com
This is an explanation of what the CSA 2010 is and what it means to you as a driver.
I went through a training class on this subject and here is what I found out. Lots of things are going to change with the implementation of the new rules. In my opinion they are all good changes and will definitely help the prevention of crashes. This is what the rules are designed for.
First and foremost, the new rules take the responsibility of the vehicles road worthiness to the driver instead of the company now. This means that if you are pulled into a scale house for an “on site” inspection and your equipment is not fit for the road then you can be “pointed” for not having a qualified piece of equipment on the road. This goes for “off site” inspections too (roadside). I am hoping that this will cause drivers to be more focused on their equipment and actually do a proper pre trip inspection instead of just marking it on their log. I can’t count the times that I have picked up a trailer at a distribution center with under-inflated tires and faulty marker lights. Yes, I repaired the faults on site before I left.
The point system: The DOT already has a data base built on approximately 5 million drivers already. This data base goes back for three years. It is your PERSONAL record, not the companies that you have worked for. This record will follow you wherever you go for another job or position at. Persepective employers will have full access to YOUR DOT record. If the record shows out of service violations for logs, equipment not worthy, speeding, or a myriad of other violations then your record will be “marked” appropriately. Now more than ever, attention to detail is something that you will have to pay your utmost attention to. It would suck to have a rookie driver with no points taking the job that you wanted because you weren’t paying attention to your logs or paperwork.
No points on your record and no violations found on off site and on site inspections can and will buy you points on your record. Remember the bonus questions in shcool? Well, it’s just like that. Have everything right when you get an inspection and you get the bonus points.
Now is the time to show your professionalisim by rising above all the rest of the drivers by keeping the points off of YOUR DOT RECORD!!! Pay attention and get paid well..
Jim
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From the outside looking in I feel CSA2010 is a step in the right direction, granted it’s not perfect though and driver’s will need to cover their butts more. But for those who refuse to get their act together I say good riddance. It seems like CSA2010 doesn’t do enough to protect the good driver’s from those DOT cops who like to write tickets or find something wrong because they feel like being a jerk. But I also feel driver’s attitude plays a big part in it as well.
We continue to have excellent information coming out on CSA2010. Glad to see we are clarifying and dispelling Rumors and Myths. Now for a few additional clarifications:
It is true at the present time drivers will not be issued a Safety Rating, so there will be no “Unfit” status, as I previously stated. I feel they originally intended this, but discovered they do not have the authority under FMCSA Part 383, which has provisions to put a driver “Out of Service”. However Anne Ferro recently made comments that was reported by TruckersNews:
“We are not at this time proposing to issue ‘safety ratings’ for drivers or to disqualify a driver based on our CSA 2010 scoring system” Ferro said. “We may consider that at some point after the program has matured but it is not part of what we are doing at this point.”
So will there be at one point a Safety Rating for Drivers, possibly. It is my opinion that a Rule Making Proceding would have to take place to get this accomplished, as in the case with the Motor Carriers in order to change the criteria for their current rating sytem.
There will be points assigned to the violations the drivers receive on roadside inspections. There is not a maximum number of points that will affect the driver adversely, at least from the FMCSA. Will the points show up in the Pre-employment Screening Program, probably, but we will not know for sure until it is made available. I say that due to the continual changes, updates or clarifications that are coming from the Administration.
In any event the Motor Carrier will use the information, points or no points in the Pre-Employment Screening Program to evaluate drivers for eligiility to hire, possible eligibility for bonus’ and/or pay increases. The points that drivers get on future violations will effect them when the driver is hired. It is felt that the past actions of drivers reflect their future actions. Thus, if a driver has many violations that would reflect a large number of points, in all probability the Motor Carrier will not hire the driver. Does the Driver need to worry about CSA2010?
Drivers do need to be concerned about CSA2010 to the point that they reduce their violations on roadside violations so that they are not adversely affecting their Driver Profile that will be built. It is true that the Administration stated, a few weeks ago, the Profile information in the Pre-employment Screening Program that was awarded to NIC Technologies as a 3rd Party Administrator, is not a part of CSA2010, but where is the data coming from. It is coming from the system setup for CSA2010. So is it really not a part of it?
I agree drivers will not have direct “Interventions” from the FMCSA at the present time. The Interventions will come as a result of finding violations, that the driver committed, at time of a internal review with the Motor Carrier, and they will only be looking at the major violations. Below is an exert from a FMCSA response to driver’s FAQ’s:
Q. What kinds of driver safety performance data is CSA 2010
looking at?
A. The new program focuses on driver enforcement for serious
rule violations, such as:
• Driving while disqualified
• Driving without a valid commercial driver’s license
• Making a false entry on a medical certificate
• Committing numerous Hours-of-Service violations
(These are examples, there are others)
Roadside Inspectors will have additional infomation at their disposal to review at the time of Inspection, as a result of CSA2010. This information will include violations previously cited on Carriers and Drivers. They would be able to use this to focus on past performances to perform “Targeted Inspections”. The inspector will be able to concentrate on areas on known non-compliance. So where are the Driver vioations coming from? Should Driver’s be concerned about violations when CSA2010 is implemented?
The responses to the drivers FAQ’s should be read by all, below is a link to the information:
http://tinyurl.com/ye5j8hh