I have been looking at these new regs coming down, and they do not look good.

I would start here, there are interviews with a few companies and info on how you as a driver will be scored, yes you. Interviews within the Industry on the CSA 2010 FMCSA Mandate

This is some very scary stuff, and will cost quite a few their CDL and or businesses.

Start on the left side bar and work your way down, pay particular attention to how you as a driver will be scored. And your scoring will start in 2007, not 2010. CSA 2010 FMCSA New Carrier Rating System Measured by 7 Behavior Analysis & Safety Improvement Categories

Read the above and start asking questions. It may just save your job. This looks very serious and not to be taken lightly. I think I would rather have a black box in my truck, and I am squeaky clean but I can see the potential for some serious abuse here to both drivers and carriers. No one will escape.

Another blog, read this one too... RMR CONSULTANTS

I am so glad I sold my equipment and got out of this racket. Man this stuff just curls my toenails.

Prediciting there could be 175,000 drivers decleared "unfit" that are currently employed.

I wonder how many even realize how serious this could be? I'll admit I clicked on the link in the other thread, but didn't get into it very far. I took more time to look into it this time, looks pretty damn serious.

Instead of just your company getting a saftey score(currently) you as a driver will recieve a score and it will follow you from company to company and will be used in a carriers evaluations for hiring.

If you are declared "unfit" you will not be allowed to drive until "points" come off your driver score.

Your score can be impacted by carrier items such as burnt out lights and brake issues among other things. Speeding and HOS violations will have a bearing on your driver score, also even warnings for moving violations will negatively affect your score as will any type of accident whether preventable or not.

This is great news. The 175,000 "drivers" who have exhibited poor safety decisions will be reigned in or forced out of the industry and the rest of us will have less competition, more freight, higher rates. The fact that a poor driver can't simply change carriers and remain a safety risk is a big plus in my view.

Jim

which would be true if you knew that only poor drivers would lose their jobs, but I can see where this will turn out badly for many undeserved safe drivers.

I doubt it will work that way. History shows us that immigration will be the key to filing those seats. Immigrating company drivers and elimination of cabotage laws allowing foreign drivers to move freight point to point within the US, Canada and Mexico.

I don't see it that way, as from what I have read, the questionable drivers will be the very first to go. You did not read that CSA2010 does not start a driver at "0" points. They go back 3 years on your driving record at its implementation. So, if you have 2 points on your record and one log book violation or warning, you are already on the radar when all of this kicks in and have points on your record. Even if you are struck by a vehicle, and are deemed not at fault, you will be scored as if it was your fault as it reads now. There are all sorts of little rules like this in the new regs. We will be punished for things that are not even in or under our control as will your carrier.

Like I said in another post, I could see this turn into a nightmare if one was to run into the wrong DOT cop. The whole driver and vehicle inspection routine has been "updated" to look for every, and I mean every little thing only a bureaucrat could think up, and the driver is just as liable as the carrier. And you know as well as I do, if you have been in this racket for any amount of time, is that a DOT inspection taken to extremes can find all sorts of things wrong, even on newer vehicles and seasoned truck drivers. Look at the section on log books in the regs, all sorts of stuff to nail a guy on with some heavy penalties.

There is even an driver fatigue section, read that one, it is completely off the wall and up to the discretion of the inspector as to your fatigue level. Do you have a TV in the truck, cell phone, etc., as these can all be used against you in judging your fitness level no matter what your log book or on board recorder shows. This has abuse written all over it, even for the best of driver.

I would not be so flippant about these new rules, especially if you think it will only target the "bad" drivers, as it sure does not read like that to me.

From the FAQ's:

#

How will CSA 2010 address the issue of non-preventable crashes?

FMCSA is developing a protocol for determining crash accountability for fatal and non-fatal commercial motor vehicle crashes under CSA 2010. The goal of developing the protocol is to only include crash records where a carrier was shown to have some level of accountability for the crash event.
#

Does crash preventability factor into anything? Will the new system improve crash data or will industry be assessed on same poor data?

FMCSA has this on its radar and a team working on the issue. As results come in and decisions are made, information will be updated for industry.
#

The crash BASIC references accident accountability. Does this mean that the accident report will be reviewed to indicate who was at fault?

The structure of the new SMS is such that crash accountability is not automatically determined or considered. Consequently, motor carriers are identified for possible intervention based on recordable crashes without consideration of accountability. However, FMCSA is considering several short- and long-term approaches to address this issue, which will be presented for public comment and consideration. The short term approach would require that crashes be evaluated by an FMCSA or State safety specialist during an investigation before crashes would be counted in a motor carrier’s formal safety fitness determination. The longer term approach would filter out "non-accountable" crashes so they would not be considered by the new SMS for identification of carriers for intervention. Approaches to determining crash accountability for safety fitness determination purposes will be detailed in a forthcoming notice of proposed rulemaking for formal public comment.

This is the key sentence, "Consequently, motor carriers are identified for possible intervention based on recordable crashes without consideration of accountability.".

This negates everything said prior, because the bottom line with this new system is the points which lead to intervention, not who did what.

That is why I hate these scoring systems, as it does not tell the whole story. I have been through this before with SAFER regarding an accident. Some how a guy with my same last name had a non fatal accident up in Chicago that resulted in a tow, he worked for Dana Trucking or something like that, but his incident wound up on my SAFER because we shared the same last name. It took me a year to get that off of my SAFER record but my score was screwed, that was never fixed. Then I had three of my drivers screwing up/off, which was two weeks of hell for me, nothing serious, just mistakes a rookie would make on their paperwork and the loading of a truck (over axle) that all resulted in tickets. If you have ever had drivers, you would know what I mean, no matter how good they are or years under their belts, stuff still happens. When it rains it pours.

We can nit pick and parse this all we want, but the bottom line is that this is some very serious stuff that could really hurt a good driver or a good carrier for a long time. We cannot all be perfect with the law 24/7, and if you say different, you are only fooling yourself.

Mike3fan mentioned above how this new system will follow a driver from company to company. Do any of you know who will be in charge of that? It will be DAC, and yes, I know that they now have another name US someting or other.

Now how many stories, true or not, have we heard from drivers regarding how DAC and carriers have abused this system over the years?

And how soon will it be until the insurance companies get ahold of these records? If you are a carrier, small or large, who is the first person notified when a new driver is looking to be hired? Most of the little guys will say their insurance company... Will they let this new guy drive my truck, because they have the ultimate final say. Each insurance company is different, mine would not allow me to hire a driver unless he had at least 3 years driving with no breaks in their employment history from the date of hire. Some are 5 years and some are 1 or 2 years and will be factored into your rate/premium. And then we have the points, my company was 3 points or less, some are 2 some are 5. How will they handle this new system? If a guy has logging troubles but is great driver with no traffic incidents, will his logging screw ups be held against him? Or that tail light wiring problem that he always flagged but was never fixed, will that follow him in regards to getting hired on somewhere? Great driver, but works for a company that can't keep up with equipment repairs. And with this economy, there are allot of companies out here that are down to making those minor repairs or pay the driver. Not the drivers fault, but the driver will be held accountable according to the new CSA rules, which is not right in my book.

See where does all of this take us as drivers and or carriers?