ATA unveils highway safety agenda

The American Trucking Associations (ATA) has unveiled the details of a highway safety agenda designed to reduce the number of highway-related fatalities and injuries for all drivers on the nation’s highways, according to ATA information. Augmenting an established platform of successful safety initiatives, ATA outlined what is said are 18 critical steps for further reducing highway crashes among all motorists. The 18 safety recommendations supplement ATA’s existing safety agenda, which includes promoting greater safety belt use by commercial drivers; re-instituting a national maximum speed limit; speed governing of all new trucks; and a decade-long initiative to create a national clearinghouse for drug and alcohol test results. The recommendations were made earlier by ATA’s Safety Task Force and adopted by ATA’s Board of Directors at the annual Management Conference and Exhibition in New Orleans. Ten recommendations to improve truck and passenger vehicle driver performance are: •Policy on the use of non-integrated technologies while the vehicle is in motion •Policy supporting uniform commercial drivers license (CDL) testing standards •Support for a CDL graduated licensing study •Advocate for additional parking facilities for trucks •Advocate for a national maximum 65mph speed limit •Pursue strategies to increase the use of seat belts •Support for a national car-truck driver behavior improvement program •Support for increased use of red light cameras and automated speed enforcement •Support for graduated licensing in all states for non-commercial teen drivers •Support for more stringent laws to reduce drinking and driving. Three recommendations that focus on making vehicles safer are: •Support targeted electronic speed governing of certain non-commercial vehicles •Require electronic speed governing of all large trucks made since 1992 •Advocate for new large truck crashworthiness standards. Five recommendations that will improve federal oversight are: •Advocate for a national employer notification system •Create a federal clearinghouse for positive drug and alcohol test results of CDL holders •Support a federal registry of certified medical examiners •Create a policy supporting access to the national Driver Information Resource •Support for required safety training by new entrant motor carriers.