Annette Sandberg, administrator of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration for the past two and a half years, has announced in a letter to the White House that she is resigning her post as of March 1.

She did not cite a reason for her resignation.

Sandberg has been FMCSA administrator since August 2003, taking office just months after the agency published its revised hours of service rule. The agency has continually faced legal challenges to the rules, including a recent petition filed by the Owner-Operators Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA). Several citizen watchdog organizations have also said they might file challenges.

Sandberg, who was chief of the Washington State Patrol and a deputy administrator at the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration before heading FMCSA, is the third person to head the 6-year-old agency.
Hours of service issues have been a major bane of administrators since the agency was founded.

In commenting on the resignation, American Trucking Associations President and CEO Bill Graves said, “The ATA and its motor carrier members express their appreciation for a job well done by Annette Sandberg. She and her team of safety professionals consistently demonstrated a willingness to openly examine motor carrier concerns and issues while maintaining the highest commitment to highway safety.

"During her tenure, the truck-involved injury crash rate decreased 13 percent while the truck-involved fatal crash rate dropped to its lowest point since the U.S. Department of Transportation began keeping records in 1975. While her focus on safety will be missed, ATA looks forward to continuing to work with FMCSA to save lives on our nation’s highways.”