U.S. Rep. Tom Petri wants the government to look into the effectiveness of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s SafeStat system.

The Safety Status Measurement System (SafeStat) shows the safety performance of individual companies. The FMCSA uses SafeStat to determine which companies should be targeted for compliance reviews and roadside inspections.
Petri, R-Wis., chairman of the House Highways and Transit Subcommittee, has asked the DOT Inspector General's office to investigate whether the SafeStat data system is effective in targeting high-risk carriers for safety reviews.
According to the National Private Truck Council, in a recent letter to DOT Inspector General Kenneth Mead, Petri suggested that the system might suffer from inaccurate and incomplete data.
Carriers have complained for years that the system is rife with inconsistent and out-of date information and has the effect of unfairly targeting certain companies due to statistical anomalies. The American Trucking Associations has said it would like to see the Carrier Safety Rating and SafeStat procedures changed so that accidents that are not a trucker's fault don't adversely affect a carrier's safety rating.
Mead has not yet responded to the request, says the association.