The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) begins its Hazardous Materials Safety and Security Field Operational Test later this month.

This test is intended to measure the effectiveness of Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS) safety and security technologies for safeguarding hazardous materials being transported by trucks.
The field operational test will determine the costs and benefits associated with transportation security technologies.
A prototype test is scheduled later this month, with full-scale testing to begin in late August. The field operational test, managed by the agency and largely funded by DOT's ITS Program, will be completed in late 2004.
The test will involve 100 trucks equipped with a variety of existing technologies. The technologies will be packaged in several different cost tiers, and will be tested across four different transportation scenarios.
The project will test the capabilities of technologies such as driver verification using password logins, fingerprint biometrics and smart cards; vehicle and load tracking, using satellites and other wireless systems; off-route and stolen vehicle alerts, using geo-fencing; cargo tampering alerts, using electronic seals; driver distress alerts, using driver panic buttons; and remote vehicle disabling in instances of known terrorist attacks.
The ITS field operational test deployment team is led by the Battelle Memorial Institute. Deployment team members include Qualcomm Inc., the American Transportation Research Institute, CVSA, TotalSecurity US, Savi Technology and Information Systems Support.
Participating state agencies include the California Highway Patrol, Illinois State Police, Illinois DOT, Texas DPS, and the New York State Police and DOT.
Original equipment and engine manufacturers also involved in the field operational test include Caterpillar Inc., Cummins Inc., Detroit Diesel Corp., Freightliner Truck Group and International Truck and Engine Corp.
"We must build on our continuous efforts to ensure the security of the more than 800,000 shipments of hazardous materials hauled on U.S. highways every day," Transportation Secretary Norman Y. Mineta said. "This operational test will help improve security and will help spur innovative technologies for safeguarding hazardous materials in the future."