TLA61_AllPages

More documents

Recommendations

Info

CAPITOL recap Feds dole out more than $471M in grants to help reduce commercial vehicle wrecks The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is hoping to reduce the number of commercial motor vehicle accidents through a multi-million dollar grant program to increase education, outreach and safety initiatives. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has awarded more than $471 million in Motor Carrier Safety Assistance Program (MCSAP) grants to help fund initiatives aimed at preventing crashes, fatalities, and injuries involving commercial motor vehicles (CMVs). “Commercial vehicles are an essential part of our supply chains, our economy, and our way of life — and we must ensure that they are as safe as possible,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. “This funding will help save lives by making our roads safer for commercial vehicle drivers and everyone who shares the road with them.” The MCSAP is FMCSA’s largest grant program, supporting state, territorial, and local transportation offices and law enforcement agencies in the utilization of more than 12,000 officers to increase education, outreach, and safety activities. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) provides for a 61% increase in the amount of funding available through MCSAP grants, giving states and territories more money than ever before to support roadway safety through enhanced driver and vehicle inspections, traffic enforcement, investigations, data collection, and public education and awareness. According to FMCSA officials, MCSAP will help reduce CMV-involved crashes, fatalities and injuries through consistent, uniform, and effective CMV safety programs that support innovative commercial driver training, safety inspections, and enhanced compliance and enforcement initiatives. “These grants align with the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Roadway Safety Strategy and ensure we are all working towards the same goal — zero fatalities on our roadways,” said FMCSA Administrator Robin Hutcheson. “FMCSA’s core mission is safety, and we are committed to working with our state and territorial partners to enhance the safety of our roadways.” Hutcheson and other leaders from FMCSA met with MCSAP grant recipients in May to further align efforts and best maximize the use of grant funding. To be eligible for the grants, a state or territory must have an FMCSA-approved Commercial Vehicle Safety Plan (CVSP). All states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and U.S. territories receive funding annually through MCSAP grants. A revised MCSAP formula, issued in 2020, promotes stability in the size of the awards to ensure that no state’s percentage of MCSAP funding will decrease by more than 3% or increase by more than 5% each year. Washington state passes restroom access law for truckers Washington Gov. Jay Inslee has signed a new law that requires shippers to provide restroom access to truck drivers during normal business hours. House Bill 1457 goes into effect on July 23. According to the law, restrooms must be located in an area “where providing access would not create an obvious health or safety risk to the motor carrier.” Additionally, there must not be any obvious security, health or safety risk to the shipper, consignee or its employees. A shipper or consignee is not required to make any physical changes to a restroom and may require that an employee accompany a motor carrier to the restroom, the law states. Under the law, a consignee is described as a person or business who takes delivery of property, cargo or materials transported in interstate or intrastate commerce from a motor carrier. Failing to comply with the new law will result in the Department of Health issuing a warning letter for a first violation. A shipper or consignee that violates the law after receiving a warning letter will be found guilty of a class 2 civil infraction. The maximum penalty for a Class 2 civil infraction is $300, not including statutory assessments, according to the state of Washington. Sponsored by TCI Business Capital / TCICapital.com / 800.707.4845 16 Truckload Authority | www.Truckload.org TCA JULY/AUGUST 2023
CAPITOL recap Latest round of Bipartisan Infrastructure Law allocations offer benefits to trucking In May, the White House released a breakdown on allocations for the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) spending. So far, more than $220 billion in funds have been made available for more than 32,000 specific projects across more than 4,500 communities in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. territories, according to a statement from the White House. Projects include money for truck parking and major infrastructure improvements that will be of direct benefit to the trucking industry. The following are only a few projects noted on the White House list. Brent Spence Bridge The Department of Transportation (DOT) awarded $250 million for the Brent Spence Bridge, which connects Kentucky and Ohio through the Mega Grant Program, part of a total investment of $1.6 billion from the infrastructure law to build a new companion bridge and rehabilitate an existing bridge along a major freight corridor on Interstate 75. Economic officials say the bridge is a vital economic connection that carries a large amount of commuter traffic and more than $400 billion in freight movement annually. This project will contribute to mobility, freight movement and supply chains nationwide. Otay Mesa Port of Entry Expansion The California Department of Transportation has been awarded $150 million to construct a new road and port of entry facility at Otay Mesa, according to transportation officials. The new port of entry will provide an alternative for nearly 3,600 trucks that cross the existing Otay Mesa and Tecate ports of entries daily; both facilities are now operating at full capacity. The project facilitates freight movement across borders with destinations at nearby distribution centers and warehouses, the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, and the Inland Empire’s mega-distribution centers in Riverside and San Bernardino counties. This April 2022 ribbon-cutting event at the Otay Mesa Land Port of Entry celebrated the completion of improvements to the truck inspection area. California has been awarded additional funds to build a new road and entry facility. President Joe Biden, right, shakes hands with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, after speaking about his infrastructure agenda beneath the Clay Wade Bailey Bridge in January. Through BIL allocations Ohio and Kentucky plan to build a companion structure to, the Brent Spence Bridge, visible in the background. I-4 West Central Florida Truck Parking Facility A $15 million grant will help build a new truck parking facility with about 120 spaces, electric charging stations, and pedestrian infrastructure to access nearby amenities. This corridor, which links Tampa and Orlando, carries an average of 18,000 trucks daily but currently lacks sufficient parking. The facility will be connected to Florida’s Department of Transportation Truck Parking Availability System to help drivers identify available parking locations more quickly. By providing reliable parking capacity, the project improves safety for tired drivers and makes supply chain movement more efficient. Hunts Point Terminal Redevelopment New York City has been awarded a $110 million Infrastructure for Rebuilding America (INFRA) grant to support the redevelopment of the Hunts Point Terminal Produce Market intermodal facility with expanded refrigerated warehouse space and electric vehicle charging stations for trucks and cars. The new Produce Market will be an approximately 1 million-squarefoot, state-of-the-art intermodal facility with approximately 824,600 square feet of refrigerated warehouse space. The project will boost the economy by improving one of the largest food distribution centers in the country, according to transportation officials. In addition, the project is expected to make the operation safer by separating vehicular, truck, rail, and pedestrian circulation and expanding truck queuing and parking areas within the facility. With the new facility, diesel-powered truck refrigeration units will no longer idle on site, resulting in emissions reductions, according to officials. TCA JULY/AUGUST 2023 www.Truckload.org | Truckload Authority 17
Page 1 and 2: Those Who Deliver | Next Gen Execut
Page 3 and 4: PRESIDENT’S PURVIEW Don’t Watch
Page 5 and 6: 555 E. Braddock Road Alexandria, VA
Page 7 and 8: Sponsored by braking. The Departmen
Page 9 and 10: information voluntarily supplied by
Page 11 and 12: Sponsored by has said the president
Page 13 and 14: CAPITOL recap CVSA removes more tha
Page 15: CVSA, FROM PAGE 13 CAPITOL recap th
Page 19 and 20: At first glance, it doesn’t appea
Page 21 and 22: that they just simply don’t know
Page 23 and 24: Like freight, however, the availabi
Page 25 and 26: others when looking to expand our t
Page 27 and 28: Sponsored by TCA JULY/AUGUST 2023 w
Page 29 and 30: TCA JULY/AUGUST 2023 www.Truckload.
Page 31 and 32: Electric tractors likely have a fut
Page 33 and 34: do have to be cognizant of what’s
Page 35 and 36: van trailers and 65 refrigerated tr
Page 37 and 38: Paul, moving from a class of 600 st
Page 39 and 40: The organization doesn’t just del
Page 41 and 42: Clark says his new truck will be in
Page 43 and 44: to get,” she explained. “So, we
Page 45 and 46: Mike Callahan of Harts Location, Ne
Page 47 and 48: TCA JULY/AUGUST 2023 www.Truckload.

TLA61_AllPages

You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles

Delete template?

Save as template?