CSA 2010, What does it mean to drivers?
Like it or not, yet another set of hoops for drivers to jump through is here. CSA 2010 is FMCSA's latest compliance enforcement tool that not only tracks carriers but individual drivers as well. Here are some highlights as it relates to driver employment below and provided links to articles that explain the changes in more detail.

The bottom line is for drivers who for the first time FMCSA is going to track and maintain safety records on individual drivers. That data will be maintained by a 3rd party vendor (NIC Technologies) and made available to both carriers and roadside safety inspectors. The following areas will be tracked:

•Unsafe driving (Parts 392 and 397);
•Fatigued driving (Parts 392 and 395);
•Driver fitness (Parts 383 and 391);
•Controlled substances/alcohol (Parts 382 and 392);
•Vehicle Maintenance (Parts 393 and 396);
•Cargo related (Parts 392, 393, 397 and hazmat); and
•Crash indicator.

Under the new system, a carrier's safety rating can be adversely affected by a decision to employ a driver with a poor safety record, and once a driver reaches a certain point he/she will be unemployable as a driver. The system is being setup so that carriers can access the ratings in making a decision on hiring or keeping a driver. It's reasonable to expect that carriers will protect their own ratings by deciding not to employ drivers with a negative record. It's important to understand that ALL recorded violations, not just convictions go into your safety record.

What does this mean to YOU?

For the first time, each commercial vehicle license holder (YOU) will be assigned a “Safety Record."

This safety record follows you regardless of the company you work for or contract with or where you live or whether you were convicted or received a warning, and the record will be available to both your employer and roadside inspectors.

All of your activity on the highway, i.e. roadside inspection violations, accidents, tickets, even warning tickets will be recorded and have a negative impact on your personal safety record.

All recorded violations, not just convictions, will go into your safety record. This makes you vulnerable to inconsistent or targeted enforcement. The best defense will be avoiding roadside inspections.

You could lose your ability to drive for a living as a result of a poor safety record. A poor safety record could make you unemployable as carriers can be prohibited from hiring you.

Official FMCSA site is straight from the horse’s mouth

Here are some more from OOIDA:


CSA 2010: Your new company, driver safety ‘credit report’
With technology morphing the way we live our lives at warp speed, it’s no big surprise that the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has decided to go high-tech with its compliance enforcement.

•CSA 2010: The data
•CSA 2010: The point system
•CSA 2010: The math
•CSA 2010: The enforcement
•CSA 2010: The labels
•CSA 2010: The rub