Federal truck safety regulations are venturing into new territory with a proposal to protect drivers from coercion, igniting concerns among shippers and others about how the rule will affect them.
Anne Ferro’s departing message is that the cost of truck and bus safety needs to be distributed more evenly through the supply chain. Too much of the burden falls on drivers who are not paid for all the time they work, said Ferro in an exit interview Thursday with a number of reporters.
President Obama has signed the latest short-term extension of the federal highway program, starting a 10-month clock on yet another funding deadline.The $10.8 billion bill, passed by Congress at the last moment before the Highway Trust Fund dipped into the red, will keep the fund solvent until next May.
Congress is inching ever closer to the edge of insolvency for the Highway Trust Fund. On Thursday afternoon the House rejected the Senate’s bill to patch the Fund into December and sent its original bill back to the upper chamber.
The Senate Thursday night approved a $10.8 billion House bill to keep the Highway Trust Fund solvent through next May. This ensures that highway funding will continue for the next 10 months.
A Senate hearing on truck safety was dominated by the ongoing struggle over the 34-hour restart provision of the hours of service rule. Anne Ferro, in what was probably her last congressional testimony before she steps down as chief of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, defended the restart.
The Senate passed a short-term patch to keep the Highway Trust Fund solvent until December 19, in effect setting up a vote this year on a long-term highway program. The $8 billion bill now goes to the House, which must act quickly if Congress is to keep the fund from going over the precipice.
Anne Ferro, who will step down as chief of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration next month, served as administrator during a period of great consequence for truck safety. Washington Editor Oliver Patton takes a look at what she has presided over in her almost five years in the post, as well as early industry reaction to her upcoming departure.
Anne Ferro will step down next month from her post as chief of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. She has served as Administrator since 2009. She will become president and CEO of the American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is implementing a number of changes designed to improve the Safety Measurement System website, some in response to industry feedback.
The Senate is poised to debate and vote on a patch to keep the Highway Trust Fund solvent until a long-term program can be funded. The question for debate is, how long will the patch last?
Congressional passage of a short-term patch for the Highway Trust Fund will avert the immediate crisis but not be cause for celebration, said Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx. Foxx and other transportation leaders are calling on Congress to preserve long-term funding for surface infrastructure.
As Congress struggles to preserve the Highway Trust Fund this summer and eventually pass a long-term highway bill, President Obama is using his executive authority to promote increased private investment in infrastructure. In remarks Thursday at the Port of Wilmington, Delaware, Obama announced a plan to help states and local governments use alternative financing for their infrastructure needs.
Congress is inching closer to passage of a stopgap measure to prevent the Highway Trust Fund from drying up this summer. The House this week passed a $10.6 billion bill and the Senate is going to choose between a similar measure or a long-term bill.
UPDATED -- Comments on the proposed Electronic Logging Device mandate cover the full spectrum of reactions, from outrage and disdain at Big Brother government to applause for a sensible and long-overdue safety rule.