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years, that detention of drivers is an industrywide problem and we
must take appropriate actions to deal with it. Data has also become
more prevalent in the world of making our drivers safer. Just walking
the exhibit floor, one will realize that the amount of data generated
by our industry, the tools we use and the performance of our drivers
aids in painting a picture that will improve the safety outcome of
our driving force, whether it be entry-level drivers or our seasoned
veterans that require refreshment training. Transportation Secretary
Elaine Chao has said that President Donald Trump’s plan to improve
the nation’s infrastructure will be released in the very near future.
The $1 trillion program will have to be accomplished despite Department
of Transportation budget cuts. The president is not getting the
support he’d hoped for, including the American Road & Transportation
Builders Association, which conducted an analysis of the plan saying
“when all elements of the proposal are combined, it is possible that
the proposed infrastructure initiative will actually result in less, not
more, federal investment in infrastructure.”
Do you believe efforts to improve the
infrastructure will become reality
or will it remain the myth it has seemingly
become? Where does TCA stand on
the president’s plan and his willingness
to increase the federal gas and
diesel tax to help fund these improvements?
TCA supports an increase in fuel
taxes, coupled with indexing, so that
the Highway Trust Fund can become
sustainable. Our infrastructure needs
improvements so that our industry can
continue to haul the nation’s freight in
an efficient and economic manner. In
saying that, it is prudent that our Congressional
leaders explore any and
every way in which this can be done.
A national fuel tax increase represents
the easiest implementable way we
can raise funds to support such a tremendous
and dynamic initiative. You
will already find this process being put
forward at the state level, so it would
naturally make sense that it be done
federally as well. An issue with the
budget as proposed is that it calls for
increased tolling. TCA members are
not in favor of tolling as a primary way
to fund infrastructure. If toll financing
is inevitable, TCA has a policy in place
that outlines important attributes that
a toll plan should adhere to.
Now that the budget has been released, Congress will have to pass an
appropriations bill to fund the proposal. Trucking and other industries
have traditionally used the appropriations bill process to get
Congress to pass new regulations that would improve their respective
industries and to finally get Congressional mandates on regulatory
issues that have stalled at the agency level. What issues would TCA
like to see included in the FY2018 appropriations bill?
Clearly, the F4A federal preemption language represents the most
important issue that is affecting our industry today. We need ONE
national standard. That represents the simplest way our drivers can
operate in interstate commerce. Having a patchwork of state rules
that address meal and rest breaks has proven inefficient and ineffective
and it’s actually detrimental to our driving force. Having preemption
language requiring that our industry should be operating under
one federal Hours of Service rule that addresses meal and rest breaks
would be the safest avenue in which our Congressional leadership
should travel. Instituting language that addresses not only those
breaks, but also piece rate and retroactivity would be the ideal solution
and the most logical, legislative vehicle to address this issue in
the upcoming appropriations bill.
The beverage industry has joined FedEx and UPS in urging Congress
to pass legislation allowing 33-foot tandem trailers. Recently, Clifford
Lynch of C.F. Lynch and Associates said such legislation has more
chance of passing now than ever before. Do you agree with Mr. Lynch’s
statement and what will TCA need to do to make sure twin 33-foot
trailers don’t indeed wind up on the nation’s highways?
I have a message for the beverage industry: Be careful what you
ask for … . Given that twin 33s do NOT call for increased weight-carrying
capabilities, (at least not yet, but I assume that’s next), what
IF the trucking industry was forced to shift to twin 33s as the common
vehicle of conveyance? In the irregular route, general freight
business, plus or minus a few percent depending upon your own client
mix, as many loads weigh out as cube out. Some commodities
are dense and others not. For the beverage industry, without question
the vast majority of their loads weigh out first. The only benefit
twin 33s would provide would be on their empty packaging loads …
empty bottles and cans as several loads worth of packaging fit in
a single conveyance. Unless they are
contemplating twin 33s in a dedicated
operation, they would actually experience
a decrease in outbound payload
in the vast majority of their shipments,
as twin 33s weigh much more than a
single 53-foot trailer. The reality of it
is, the beverage industry would rely on
a mix of 53s and twin 33s to service
their businesses and that’s the TL issue.
On one leg of the trip, there may
be a benefit to a shipper, but the TL
carrier endures the costs on every leg.
Whether it’s extra empty miles to find
the next light load, whether it’s accepting
a lesser paying load that weighs
out first because they can’t handle the
same weight as the guy with the 53
… it’s very complicated. Let’s face it …
our industry has been discussing truck
size and weight since the 1960s and
quite honestly those same conversations
that we had back then are being
had again today. What does TCA need
to do to make sure that this configuration
doesn’t end up on our highways?
That answer is simple: Tell our story.
We are an industry that represents
the majority of freight that is moved
across the nation, and employing new
standards for truck size and weight
that will have a negative effect on the
largest portion of our industry is simply
not a sound decision. If you want
to talk improved efficiency, let’s talk about doing more with the resources
we already have and are already invested in … . The real
conversation that needs to be had is one which addresses detention.
Proven to be a truckload-specific problem, getting our drivers
to drive, rather than wait has reached epidemic proportions. Simple
changes in freight management can truly move the needle on productivity,
retention, driver pay and even safety. This is the conversation
our regulators should truly be having.
President Trump’s executive order freezing work on rulemakings and
requiring agencies to eliminate two rules for every one they create
has seemingly brought the regulatory process to a standstill. First, is
there any indication how long that freeze will last and if agencies
have to eliminate two rules for every one they create, how will the
trucking industry be impacted?
The length of the freeze continues to grow as our industry, along
with many other industries, continues to wait for the administration
to put the right people in place who can understand how we operate.
The entry-level driver training rule is one example of a rule that
kept getting delayed because of the freeze. Our industry is filled with
great training institutions for drivers, but we also have what we call
CDL mills that this rule is supposed to help eliminate. Continuing
32 Truckload Authority | www.Truckload.org TCA 2017