Evergreen Safety Council produces a monthly newsletter covering a variety of safety topics. Each month we will provide a link here to the online PDF.
Inside this Issue:
Lead Article – Enforcement vs. Compliance Assistance
People in Safety – IMCO General Construction
It Will Get Hot Again, We Promise!
Stopping at Intersections
Improving Response to Major Incidents – Part 3 of 3
Regular Features:
Membership Corner
Forklift Corner
Calendar of Events
Safety Gallery
And more....
You can also sign up to receive an electronic copy via email or hard copy via the mail. This link will also take you to a full archive with over four years of past issues.
So pour yourself a cup of coffee, sit back and read all about what's going on in the world of safety & health.
Showing posts with label CSA2010. Show all posts
Showing posts with label CSA2010. Show all posts
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Friday, March 11, 2011
FMCSA is sending out Warning Letters now
Many carriers may not know what to do. These letters drive the need for carriers to review safety practices and training, as well as to shore up possible deficiencies. The Evergreen Safety Council Online Institute, which features courses designed to cover the training required by the FMCSA.
FMCSA BEGINS ISSUING 23,000 CSA WARNING LETTERS
FMCSA has begun sending an initial batch of 23,000 Compliance, Safety, Accountability program warning letters to fleets as the agency begins concrete interventions in its new program. Over the next several months, a total of at least 50,000 warning letters will be sent, Boyd Stephenson, manager of safety and security for ATA, told Transport Topics.
Warning letters advise carriers that their performance merited “alert” status by falling below acceptable levels on at least one of CSA’s Behavior Analysis and Safety Improvement Categories, or BASICs. Those BASICs, such as unsafe or fatigued driving, form the statistical heart of CSA’s safety measurement system, which assigns a percentage ranking on each BASIC and establishes thresholds. Warning letters are sent when threshold levels are exceeded.
“A review of [insert carrier name] safety data shows a lack of compliance with motor carrier safety regulations and suggests that your safety performance has fallen to an unacceptable level,” John Van Steenburg, director of FMCSA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance, writes in these alert letters. Agency spokeswoman Candice Tolliver said both trucking and bus companies will receive letters over the next two months, but she couldn’t say exactly how many went to truck fleets. About 8% of carriers will receive warning letters, based on FMCSA statistics that count 650,000 carriers.
Stephen Keppler, executive director of the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance, said the warning letters are an important step because they quadruple the number of carriers facing active FMCSA intervention. Under the former SafeStat system, the agency took action against just 2% of carriers. Keppler said it was difficult to judge industry safety levels based on the number of warning letters because there is no earlier point of comparison to show whether progress was being made.
Warning letters can be followed by off-site or on-site investigations if carriers’ performance doesn’t improve. There is no time limit for responding to the letters. The agency’s enforcement options include creation of a cooperative safety plan, imposition of civil penalties, suspension or revocation of vehicle registration or revocation of operating authority.
“Just because you get a warning letter doesn’t mean you are a bad carrier,” Keppler said, noting that the agency’s tightest focus will be on 7,900 highest-risk carriers with the worst safety performance. “The important thing is that folks who get these things pay attention,” he said, adding that he was encouraged that more than half of carriers who received warnings during the CSA pilot test period took effective remedial action.
The letters are an expected step, based on the gradual implementation of CSA. FMCSA chose the gradual approach to mailing the letters, ATA’s Stephenson said, because “the agency was concerned about overwhelming both the industry and their [own] staff by sending them out all at once.”
Fleets receiving the letters are subject to increased roadside inspections. To help fleets improve compliance, the agency posted aTip Sheet on its website that advises what they can do after a letter arrives. Fleets are advised to conduct a detailed analysis of their safety data and take steps to improve compliance. Those steps include checking data for accuracy, correcting any errors, understanding the Safety Measurement System used to compute the scores and using a detailed analysis to improve compliance. A factsheet about the warning letter intervention provides a sample warning letter and some frequently asked questions.
Meanwhile, a new report highlighted FMCSA’s plan to sharply increase funding and staffing for CSA. The Feb. 25 report by the Government Accountability Office said the agency requested $78 million in its CSA budget for fiscal 2012, compared with $9.5 million it spent in fiscal 2010. The report was requested by the Republican and Democratic chairmen of the congressional transportation appropriations subcommittees as well as their ranking minority members, who expressed concern about past funding levels. In total, FMCSA contemplates having 696 employees working full time on the program, the report said. By comparison, 45 people worked on the program in 2009, with just five of them full-time employees.
(From: Transport Topics Online, 3/7/11)
FMCSA ADMINISTRATOR DISCUSSES CSA WARNING LETTERS
In the most recent edition of CVSA's Guardian, Anne Ferro, Administrator of the FMCSA, addressed the issue of warning letters for the new Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA) enforcement program for commercial trucks and buses. She characterized the letters as “an important part of the CSA intervention process” by notifying carriers of their safety performance issues so they can take corrective action, “sort of like a first-level intervention.” FMCSA issued warning letters only in nine pilot-test states in January. Carriers located in the remaining 41 states will receive warning letters during the first quarter of 2011.
“We expect to send about 27,000 warning letters during this timeframe,” she said. “After the initial round, FMCSA anticipates sending about 3,100 each month nationwide.” She noted that states can expect more DataQs requests as a result of warning letters. The DataQs system is an electronic means for filing concerns about federal and state data released to the public by FMCSA. Through this system, data concerns are automatically forwarded to the appropriate office for resolution. The system also allows filers to monitor the status of each filing.
(From: SC&RA Newsletter, 2/18/11)
FMCSA BEGINS ISSUING 23,000 CSA WARNING LETTERS
FMCSA has begun sending an initial batch of 23,000 Compliance, Safety, Accountability program warning letters to fleets as the agency begins concrete interventions in its new program. Over the next several months, a total of at least 50,000 warning letters will be sent, Boyd Stephenson, manager of safety and security for ATA, told Transport Topics.
Warning letters advise carriers that their performance merited “alert” status by falling below acceptable levels on at least one of CSA’s Behavior Analysis and Safety Improvement Categories, or BASICs. Those BASICs, such as unsafe or fatigued driving, form the statistical heart of CSA’s safety measurement system, which assigns a percentage ranking on each BASIC and establishes thresholds. Warning letters are sent when threshold levels are exceeded.
“A review of [insert carrier name] safety data shows a lack of compliance with motor carrier safety regulations and suggests that your safety performance has fallen to an unacceptable level,” John Van Steenburg, director of FMCSA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance, writes in these alert letters. Agency spokeswoman Candice Tolliver said both trucking and bus companies will receive letters over the next two months, but she couldn’t say exactly how many went to truck fleets. About 8% of carriers will receive warning letters, based on FMCSA statistics that count 650,000 carriers.
Stephen Keppler, executive director of the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance, said the warning letters are an important step because they quadruple the number of carriers facing active FMCSA intervention. Under the former SafeStat system, the agency took action against just 2% of carriers. Keppler said it was difficult to judge industry safety levels based on the number of warning letters because there is no earlier point of comparison to show whether progress was being made.
Warning letters can be followed by off-site or on-site investigations if carriers’ performance doesn’t improve. There is no time limit for responding to the letters. The agency’s enforcement options include creation of a cooperative safety plan, imposition of civil penalties, suspension or revocation of vehicle registration or revocation of operating authority.
“Just because you get a warning letter doesn’t mean you are a bad carrier,” Keppler said, noting that the agency’s tightest focus will be on 7,900 highest-risk carriers with the worst safety performance. “The important thing is that folks who get these things pay attention,” he said, adding that he was encouraged that more than half of carriers who received warnings during the CSA pilot test period took effective remedial action.
The letters are an expected step, based on the gradual implementation of CSA. FMCSA chose the gradual approach to mailing the letters, ATA’s Stephenson said, because “the agency was concerned about overwhelming both the industry and their [own] staff by sending them out all at once.”
Fleets receiving the letters are subject to increased roadside inspections. To help fleets improve compliance, the agency posted a
Meanwhile, a new report highlighted FMCSA’s plan to sharply increase funding and staffing for CSA. The Feb. 25 report by the Government Accountability Office said the agency requested $78 million in its CSA budget for fiscal 2012, compared with $9.5 million it spent in fiscal 2010. The report was requested by the Republican and Democratic chairmen of the congressional transportation appropriations subcommittees as well as their ranking minority members, who expressed concern about past funding levels. In total, FMCSA contemplates having 696 employees working full time on the program, the report said. By comparison, 45 people worked on the program in 2009, with just five of them full-time employees.
(From: Transport Topics Online, 3/7/11)
FMCSA ADMINISTRATOR DISCUSSES CSA WARNING LETTERS
In the most recent edition of CVSA's Guardian, Anne Ferro, Administrator of the FMCSA, addressed the issue of warning letters for the new Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA) enforcement program for commercial trucks and buses. She characterized the letters as “an important part of the CSA intervention process” by notifying carriers of their safety performance issues so they can take corrective action, “sort of like a first-level intervention.” FMCSA issued warning letters only in nine pilot-test states in January. Carriers located in the remaining 41 states will receive warning letters during the first quarter of 2011.
“We expect to send about 27,000 warning letters during this timeframe,” she said. “After the initial round, FMCSA anticipates sending about 3,100 each month nationwide.” She noted that states can expect more DataQs requests as a result of warning letters. The DataQs system is an electronic means for filing concerns about federal and state data released to the public by FMCSA. Through this system, data concerns are automatically forwarded to the appropriate office for resolution. The system also allows filers to monitor the status of each filing.
(From: SC&RA Newsletter, 2/18/11)
Friday, January 7, 2011
Commercial Motor Vehicle Classes
Contributed by Tina Bacon, Program Coordinator, Evergreen Safety Council
Through our allied partner AdvanceOnline.com, Evergreen Safety Council is proud to offercourses for Commercial Motor Vehicle Operators. These courses are designed to provide the driver with concepts and skill necessary to better perform their duties. Continuing Education Units are available for several of these online training courses. All of these course can be found under the heading of Transportation Courses. 
The Best Practices for CMV Drivers series consist of 6 online classes that last approximately 10 minutes each. The on-line training courses can be taken in any order. The cost for each topic listed below is $9.99:
Through our allied partner AdvanceOnline.com, Evergreen Safety Council is proud to offer
The Best Practices for CMV Drivers series consist of 6 online classes that last approximately 10 minutes each. The on-line training courses can be taken in any order. The cost for each topic listed below is $9.99:
Best Practices for CMV Drivers:
- Adverse Conditions and Emergency Situations
- Changing Lanes and Passing
- Curves, Turns, and Downgrades
- Pedestrians and Passengers
- Right-of-Way and Intersections
- Start-Up, Back-Up, and Parking Procedures
The Cargo Securement for Drivers series consist of eleven online classes. This series is suitable for Drivers who transport multiple types of cargo. The courses in this series cover the general cargo securement rules, as well as the special commodity-specific rules in the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs).
It is recommended that you begin your training with: Cargo Securement for Drivers: General Requirements. Each course listed below can be taken individually or for a significant savings, purchase all of the courses titles as a bundle (Cargo Securement for Drivers Bundle) for $99.95.
Each course under this listing takes approximately 30-45 minutes to complete. The cost for each topic ranges from $24.95 to $39.95.
Cargo Securement for Drivers
- Automobiles, Light Trucks, and Vans, and Flattened or Crushed Vehicles
- Concrete Pipe
- Dressed Lumber and Similar Building Products
- General Requirements
- Heavy Vehicles, Equipment, and Machinery
- Intermodal Containers
- Large Boulders
- Logs
- Metal Coils
- Paper Rolls
- Roll-On/Roll-Off or Hook Lift
Under the heading DOT HAZMAT Courses, we offer the following 6 online courses. The topics:
- DOT Hazardous Materials General Awareness (approximately 1 hour)
- DOT Hazmat Security Awareness for Drivers (approximately 30 minutes)
- DOT Hazmat Security Awareness for Shippers and Carriers (approximately 30 minutes)
DOT Training for Drivers of Hazmat Shipments (approximately 4 hours) - DOT Training for Offerors of Bulk and Non-bulk Hazmat Packages (approximately 5 hours)
- DOT Training for Offerors of Non-bulk Hazmat Packages (approximately 4 hours)
Cost for each topic under the DOT HAZMAT Courses range from $29.95 to $69.95.
The remaining list of courses under Transportation Courses consist of:
- DOT Driver's Guide to CDL Requirements (approximately 1 hour)
- DOT Driver's Guide to Driving CMVs (approximately 1 hour)
- DOT Driving Commercial Motor Vehicles: Rules of the Road (approximately 1 hour)
- DOT Drug and Alcohol Reasonable Suspicion Training (approximately 2 hours)
- DOT Financial Responsibility for Passenger-Carrying Motor Carriers (approximately 30 minutes)
- DOT Financial Responsibility for Property-Carrying Motor Carriers (approximately 30 minutes)
- DOT Hours of Service for Oilfield Operations (approximately 30 minutes)
- DOT Motor Carrier General Applicability: Who and When (approximately 1 hour)
- Driver Wellness (approximately 30 minutes)
- Tanker Truck Inspections for Drivers (approximately 1 hour)
- Whistleblower Protection (Transportation) (approximately 30 minutes)
Cost for each of these topics range from $9.95 to $69.95.
Tuesday, December 14, 2010
FMCSA Launches New Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA) Program for Commercial Trucks and Buses
Contributed by Tom Odegaard, Executive Director, Evergreen Safety Council
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) today took a major step toward improving commercial truck and bus safety with the launch of theCompliance Safety Accountability (CSA) program.
The centerpiece of CSA is theSafety Measurement System (SMS), which will analyze all safety-based violations from inspections and crash data to determine a commercial motor carrier’s on-road performance. The new safety program will allow FMCSA to reach more carriers earlier and deploy a range of corrective interventions to address a carrier’s specific safety problems.
“The CSA program will help us more easily identify unsafe commercial truck and bus companies,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. “Better data and targeted enforcement will raise the safety bar for commercial carriers and empower them to take action before safety problems occur.”
The program also advances the Obama Administration’s open government initiative by providing the public with safety data in a more user-friendly format. This will give consumers a better picture of those carriers that pose a safety risk. CSA was also tested in nine pilot states before the program was launched.
“We worked closely with our partners in the motor vehicle community to develop this powerful new program,” said FMCSA Administrator Anne S. Ferro. “CSA is an important new tool that will help reduce commercial vehicle-related crashes and save lives.”
The SMS uses seven safety improvement categories called BASICs to examine a carrier’s on-road performance and potential crash risk. The BASICs are Unsafe Driving, Fatigued Driving (Hours-of-Service), Driver Fitness, Controlled Substances/Alcohol, Vehicle Maintenance, Cargo-Related and Crash Indicator. Under FMCSA’s old measurement system, carrier performance was assessed in only four broad categories.
By looking at a carrier’s safety violations in each SMS category, FMCSA and state law enforcement will be better equipped to identify carriers with patterns of high-risk behaviors and apply interventions that provide carriers the information necessary to change unsafe practices early on.
Safety interventions include early warning letters, targeted roadside inspections and focused compliance reviews that concentrate enforcement resources on specific issues identified by the SMS.
FMCSA will continue to conduct onsite comprehensive compliance reviews for carriers with safety issues across multiple BASICs. And, where a carrier has not taken the appropriate corrective action, FMCSA will invoke strong civil penalties.
PLEASE NOTE: For parties interested in downloading data for more than one carrier, please visit theSMS Download page.
Online training classes for CSA BASICs as well as HAZMAT Transportation are available throughESC. Register Today.
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) today took a major step toward improving commercial truck and bus safety with the launch of the
The centerpiece of CSA is the
“The CSA program will help us more easily identify unsafe commercial truck and bus companies,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. “Better data and targeted enforcement will raise the safety bar for commercial carriers and empower them to take action before safety problems occur.”
The program also advances the Obama Administration’s open government initiative by providing the public with safety data in a more user-friendly format. This will give consumers a better picture of those carriers that pose a safety risk. CSA was also tested in nine pilot states before the program was launched.
“We worked closely with our partners in the motor vehicle community to develop this powerful new program,” said FMCSA Administrator Anne S. Ferro. “CSA is an important new tool that will help reduce commercial vehicle-related crashes and save lives.”
The SMS uses seven safety improvement categories called BASICs to examine a carrier’s on-road performance and potential crash risk. The BASICs are Unsafe Driving, Fatigued Driving (Hours-of-Service), Driver Fitness, Controlled Substances/Alcohol, Vehicle Maintenance, Cargo-Related and Crash Indicator. Under FMCSA’s old measurement system, carrier performance was assessed in only four broad categories.
By looking at a carrier’s safety violations in each SMS category, FMCSA and state law enforcement will be better equipped to identify carriers with patterns of high-risk behaviors and apply interventions that provide carriers the information necessary to change unsafe practices early on.
Safety interventions include early warning letters, targeted roadside inspections and focused compliance reviews that concentrate enforcement resources on specific issues identified by the SMS.
FMCSA will continue to conduct onsite comprehensive compliance reviews for carriers with safety issues across multiple BASICs. And, where a carrier has not taken the appropriate corrective action, FMCSA will invoke strong civil penalties.
PLEASE NOTE: For parties interested in downloading data for more than one carrier, please visit the
Online training classes for CSA BASICs as well as HAZMAT Transportation are available through
Tuesday, October 12, 2010
Safety & Health Solutions Newsletter - November edition
Evergreen Safety Council produces a monthly newsletter covering a variety of safety topics. Each month we will provide a link here to the online PDF.
Inside this Issue:
Lead Article – Improving Large Trucks & Bus Safety
People in Safety – Robin Robertson, Risk Manager, City of Renton
Articles -
CSA 2010 Basics
Preventing Back-Over Accidents in the Work Zone
Now that the dust has started to settle…
Make Yourself Visible
How to Use Your Seatbelts
Is “More Training” the Solution to Human Error? Part 1 of 3
Machine Guarding
Safety is Always in Season
You can also sign up to receive an electronic copy via email or hard copy via the mail. This link will also take you to a full archive with over four years of past issues.
So pour yourself a cup of coffee, sit back and read all about what's going on in the world of safety & health.
Thursday, September 2, 2010
Oregon Employers Traffic Safety Conference
Evergreen Safety Council is hosting a 1-Day Traffic Safety Conference.
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Do you have employees that drive? During work? To and from work? Learn from industry experts on how you can help reduce the #1 cause of workplace fatalities – Crashes! Save your company money and save your employees lives.
Reserve you spot now for this dynamic training event! Register Today!
2010 AGENDA
Welcome & State of the State
2010 AGENDA
Welcome & State of the State
Tom Odegaard, Evergreen Safety Council
Moving Together: Traffic & Light Rail
Moving Together: Traffic & Light Rail
Steve Mills, Operations Life Saver
CSA 2010 Training & Implementation
CSA 2010 Training & Implementation
Frank Zamudio, USDOT
Managing Our Driving Behaviors
Syd Muzzy, Safe Driver Trainer &Consultant
Distracted Driving: Cell Phones & Texting
Distracted Driving: Cell Phones & Texting
PIO Gregg Hastings (Officer Jim Pierce), Oregon State Police
How Highway Safety Features Work
Dave White, D&D Safety
Winter Driving Safety Tips
Winter Driving Safety Tips
Bob Yates, Evergreen Safety Council
Vendors include ACTS Oregon, CROET, ESC and more...
Cost: $45 Register Online Today!
Costs includes continental breakfast and catered lunch
Location: The facility has been generously donated by NECA/IBEW on Airport Way in Portland, OR
Students can register for any of our courses on-line from ourwebsite, by filling out a registration form (pdf), or by calling (800) 521-0778 to request a registration form.
For more information about ourOregon training programs, please visit our website.
Location: The facility has been generously donated by NECA/IBEW on Airport Way in Portland, OR
Students can register for any of our courses on-line from our
For more information about our
Friday, August 20, 2010
FMCSA updates CSA 2010 data preview website
TRANSPORTATION SAFETY NEWSFrom the
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration on Monday updated its Comprehensive Safety Analysis 2010 data preview
The website provides motor carriers and enforcement staff with information on their standings in Behavior Analysis and Safety Improvement Categories, which are based on roadside data and investigation findings, according to an FMCSA
The site is part of the agency's efforts to implement a new compliance and enforcement program to better identify high-risk motor carriers, strengthen enforcement efforts and improve safety performance data.
ESC is offering
Developed by our allied partner AdvanceOnline Solutions, along with experts from the DOT Transportation Safety Institute, the courses cover the CSA 2010 Behavior Analysis and Safety Improvement Categories (BASICs).
BASIC 1 - Unsafe Driving
BASIC 2 - Fatigued Driving (Hours-of-Service)
BASIC 3 - Driver Fitness
BASIC 4 - Controlled Substances/Alcohol
BASIC 5 - Crash Indicator
BASIC 6 - Vehicle Maintenance
BASIC 7 - Cargo-Related
Visit our website for information and to register for our
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