IT PAYS TO BE SAFE

No. 31, August, 2010
CSA 2010--Vehicle Maintenance

This is the fifth in our seven-part series on CSA 2010's measurements analysis for driver behavior known as BASIC (Behavior Analysis & Safety Improvement Categories). As we reminded drivers in the past few issues, it is estimated that as many as 175,000 drivers will be lost to the industry who do not live up to the BASIC criteria.

The fifth of the seven criteria pertains to vehicle maintenance. Drivers will now be personally assessed on whether their commercial motor vehicle (tractor/trailer) fail inspections due to improper or inadequate maintenance. The data that will be utilized by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration will pertain to:

• Roadside violations for brakes, lights and other mechanical defects;
• Crash reports that cite a mechanical failure as a contributing factor in the crash; and
• Violations found from off-site investigation or an on-site investigation associated with pre-trip inspections, maintenance records and repair records.

The focus of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration will come directly from §393 and §396 of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Act. While §393 outlines all of the important safety equipment of a semi-tractor/trailer, our experience at Holmes & Wiseley, P.C., tells us that the major area of inquiry, where drivers most often fall down, pertains to brake inspections.

As we've written about before in It Pays to be Safe, automatic slack adjusters are not automatic. Drivers must inspect the slack adjustment on their tractors and trailers on a regular basis in order to assure themselves that they are in proper adjustment.

After reading this It Pays to be Safe, make sure you are familiar with the appropriate adjustment for 2o-inch, 24-inch, 30-inch and 36-inch brake chambers. Remember, under CSA 2010, appropriate maintenance of your tractor does not simply fall to the company and the company's mechanics. It is you, the truck driver, who will ultimately be held responsible under the new system of review.

Remember, a well-maintained truck keeps you and the traveling public safe, and it always pays to be safe.