As reported in Transport Topics magazine, a recent survey from the American Transportation Research Institute says that of the 4,555 U.S. truck drivers surveyed, the majority were misinformed when it comes to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration's (FMCSA’s) new Compliance Safety Accountability (CSA) enforcement program. 

According to the driver survey:

- 87% falsely believed that traffic tickets/convictions are part of FMCSA's Safety Measurement System (SMS) calculations. The data kept by a state (i.e. tickets, citations, written warnings, convictions) and the data that are kept in the SMS (i.e. violations from RI and crash reports) are separate.

- 78% of drivers incorrectly believed that a trucking company inherits past violations from new hires. Carriers do not inherit any of a newly hired driver's past violations; only those inspections that a driver receives while driving under a carrier's authority can be applied to a carrier's SMS record.

- 72% falsely believed that FMCSA can revoke a commercial driver's license (CDL) as a result of the program. CSA does not give FMCSA the authority to remove drivers from their jobs and cannot be used to rate drivers or to revoke a CDL; only state agencies responsible for issuing licenses, CDL or otherwise, have the authority to suspend them.

- 68.6% of drivers falsely believed that CSA takes into account a driver's personal vehicle driving record. Tickets or warnings that Commercial Motor Vehicle (CMV) drivers receive while operating their personal vehicles do not count in the SMS.

- 58.5% of drivers falsely believed that the federal motor carrier safety regulations have changed as a result of CSA. CSA has not changed any of FMCSA's regulations, although FMCSA is advocating for a future rule change to alter the carrier safety rating process for determining whether or not a carrier is unfit.

In addition, there are seven SMS BASIC categories, some which are publicly available and some that are not. The survey found that 99% could not correctly identify which five BASIC scores could be found publicly. The seven are: Unsafe Driving, Fatigued Driving (Hours-of-Service), Driver Fitness, Controlled Substances/Alcohol, Vehicle Maintenance, Cargo-Related (Not Publicly Available), and Crash Indicator (Not Publicly Available).

Additionally, 98% of those surveyed did not know that FMCSA enforcement staff are the only group of people who can access official driver scores.

For a full explanation of CSA regulations, go here: http://www.csa2010.com/articles/FAQs_CSA_2010.htm 

The address to send TQL invoices has changed. To ensure your payments arrive in a timely fashion, please send all invoices and BOLs to the following address beginning October 3, 2011:

For faster processing on load payments that do not require original documents, please continue to submit paperwork electronically. Should you need assistance at any time, please feel free to contact our accounting team at: 513-831-2600 or 800-580-3101, ext. 2300. Thank you for working with TQL!

Congress passed and President Obama signed into law the Federal Aviation Administration and Highway Extensions Act in September 2011, which will continue current funding levels that would have expired in another six months.

This is the latest in a series of short-term extensions that have been passed since the 2009 expiration of the “Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users” highway legislation. Trucking industry organizations such as the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) continue to push congress for multi-year legislation. “States cannot make long-term plans without short-term extensions. We need multi-year legislation,” says AASHTO.

In August, TQL Freight Finder Version 2.0 was made available for download from the Apple App Store for the Apple iPhone, iPad and iPod touch, and from the Android Market for the Android. We received helpful feedback from our carriers about the initial app after its launch in February 2011, and as a result have added new enhanced features. This updated version has replaced the first on all download sites.

•  Adjustable Destination Radius

The flexibility to select different searches by mileage radius for a truck to pick up and drop off shipments

• State to State Search

See available loads by state without having to specify a city when searching

• Additional Equipment Options Listed

The ability to search for truck loads for both step decks and vented vans

• Multiple Equipment Selections

The ability to search loads for multiple types of trucks at the same time

• Canadian Freight Search

Locate TQL loads into and out of Canada

• Email, Not Just Call a TQL Account Executive

Email the account executive in charge of managing a load directly by tapping the SmartPhone touch screen

Click on the link below to see examples of the features and benefits of TQL’s Freight Finder Version 2.0: www.tql.com/freightfinderversion2.

TQL recently completed our annual Carrier Survey. Thank you to all who responded for taking the time to share your thoughts with us about our service. Eighty-seven percent of you indicated that you would recommend TQL to other transportation companies. While we appreciate that vote of confidence, we are never satisfied, and want to continue to improve our service to you in any way we can. In the below video, TQL Carrier Project Manager, Eric Olson, as he addresses some specific points raised frequently in some responses and discusses how we plan to address these concerns going forward: