Shippers' Capacity Concerns Mount as FMCSA Proposes Cuts to Driver Hours

NEWARK, N.J., Feb. 28, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration's proposed initiative for reducing trucking accidents would limit driving time, adding driver availability to the list of in-demand capacity resources. Cutting just one hour from a driver's daily clock reduces their wages, adds to carrier costs and has a ripple effect the length of the international supply chain. This week, The Journal of Commerce Cover Story examines opposition on various sides of this and other proposed safety initiatives.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110228/NY56179 )

"We owe it to the public to establish strong safety performance measures," FMCSA Administrator Anne S. Ferro told the JOC. "We're working toward a continued dramatic reduction in fatal crashes."

Manufacturers and motor carriers alike are anxious about the impact on productivity, however, in lost miles and driver shortages. It could reverberate along supply chains from Beijing to Boise, said JOC Senior Editor William Cassidy, noting that an hour lost in Idaho could mean a missed delivery window for a shipment from China, adding up to a higher total landed cost.

And drivers themselves are alarmed by the proposal, with the rumble of a legal fight from organized labor, safety advocacy groups and trucking coalitions growing louder. A provision increasing required downtime from 34 hours to 51 would hamper a driver's ability to meet a delivery schedule and exacerbate the complexity of a timing equation that is often out of their control. One's schedule ultimately depends "on shippers and receivers and how long we have to sit at their docks," truck driver Tim Weir told FMCSA officials at the listening session on the agency's proposed rule. "They have the idea that once we're at their docks, they can take all the time that they want. It's a variable the driver is not able to control."

Additional insight from Senior Editor William Cassidy on this issue can be found at the JOC Roundtable blog and in the Editor-to-Editor podcast "Q&A: Proposed Changes to Truck Driver's Hours of Service."

To view daily news visit www.joc.com. For all media enquires, including article reprints, please contact Editorial Director Paul Page.

Since 1827, The Journal of Commerce has been the most trusted source of intelligence for international logistics executives to help them plan global supply chains and better manage day-to-day transportation of goods and commodities in the United States and internationally.

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About UBM Global Trade - UBM Global Trade is the leading provider of proprietary data, news, business intelligence and analytical content supporting commercial maritime, rail, trucking, warehousing and logistics industries worldwide. The company's portfolio of more than 100 online, print and interactive workflow business solutions includes The Journal of Commerce, Breakbulk, RailResource, PIERS and an array of international trade and transportation databases and directories. UBM Global Trade, a subsidiary of United Business Media Limited, is headquartered in Newark, NJ, with offices throughout the United States. For more information, explore www.ubmglobaltrade.com or call 800-952-3839 (+1-973-776-8660 outside the U.S. or Canada).

SOURCE The Journal of Commerce

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