What's New: CSA 2010 News and Information

Did you know? So far this fall, FMCSA has briefed the following three groups of legislative staff on the status of the CSA 2010 Operational Model Test and plans for implementation. 

• U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations, Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Subcommittee
• U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation
• U.S. House of Representatives, Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure

The Congressional Briefing is available at: http://csa2010.fmcsa.dot.gov/Documents/CongressionalBriefing_10222009.ppt.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) will be holding two public listening session webinars in December about the Agency’s Comprehensive Safety Analysis 2010 (CSA 2010) initiative.  Previous listening sessions collected public input regarding ways FMCSA could improve its process of monitoring and assessing the safety performance of the commercial motor carrier industry.

The FMCSA will use the upcoming listening session webinars to inform the public on the latest progress of CSA 2010 and answer questions from stakeholders.  The first webinar will be held on Thursday, December 3, 2009 and present CSA 2010 Overview and Operational Model Test Results.  The second webinar will be held on Thursday, December 10, 2009 and present CSA 2010 from a Motor Carrier and Driver Perspective.  

Your participation in these listening session webinars is encouraged.  To register and submit questions for the webinars, please visit http://csa2010.fmcsa.dot.gov/listeningSessions/ by November 30, 2009.  Also, written comments regarding CSA 2010 can be filed to the Federal Docket Management System at http://www.regulations.gov, Docket ID Number FMCSA-2004-18898. 

This week Maryland officially became the eighth CSA 2010 Operational Model test state and 21,290 Maryland-domiciled carriers will now be assessed using the new Safety Measurement System.  Any safety problems that are identified will be addressed using the new CSA 2010 interventions process.  The new interventions include warning letters, offsite investigations and on-site focused investigations in addition to the on-site comprehensive investigations used to address carriers with the most serious safety problems.

We've recently added new materials to the CSA 2010 website.  They include the latest issue of the CSA 2010 Dispatch and several recent CSA 2010 briefings given to Congress, OOIDA, and ATA.  Take a few minutes to check them out!

October has already been filled with a rich set of outreach and implementation activities including a panel discussion and an active information booth at the American Trucking Association (ATA) conference October 4 through October 7, a briefing and question and answer session with the Owner Operator Independent Driver Association (OOIDA) on October 14th, and a Federal State Working Group meeting hosted by Minnesota, a new test state, October 6 to 8.  Stay tuned for more information on these events and others as full implementation draws closer!

The Roadside Inspection Program conducts 3 million inspections each year, providing a wealth of information on most active commercial motor vehicles (CMV) operating in the United States.  Under the CSA 2010 Operational Model, the new Safety Measurement System uses all roadside inspection results to compile a carrier’s safety profile, not just out-of-service or moving violations.  This means that Roadside Inspectors will play an even greater role in helping to reduce CMV crashes and make the roads safer for everyone.   Be sure to check out the new factsheet for Roadside Inspectors!

September has been an active month for CSA 2010 communication and outreach activities.
 
Some of the highlights from this month:

• CSA 2010 Operational Model test representatives participated in a panel discussion at the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s fall conference in Baltimore, Maryland 
• Operational Model Test Division Administrators hosted 3 interactive webinars for their non-test state peers
• CSA 2010 representatives introduced the new approach to organizations such as:
  • National Private Truck Council 
  • North American Transportation Services Association 
  • Several state-level trucking associations 
     

Similar events are planned in October and November.  Stay tuned!

Kansas officially became the seventh Operational Model test state in mid-September!  Industry outreach activities began over the summer and are continuing as the new program gets underway.  All Federal and state investigators and program managers in Kansas completed an intensive week-long training course and are now employing the new Safety Measurement System and new interventions process to improve carrier safety.

More Webinars to Follow

The first in a series of Webinars on the implementation of CSA 2010 and its impact upon FMCSA’s workforce took place August 18.  Division Administrators from CSA 2010 test states discussed changes and answered questions from their peers including: 

• Are the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs) changing? ANSWER: No.  The Safety Fitness Determination (SFD) notice of proposed rulemaking is under development but CSA 2010 implementation is not dependent on SFD.
•  Will Field Staff have to re-apply for new job positions?  ANSWER: No. Job and grades are not changing.
• Will training on the new CSA 2010 safety measurement system and new interventions processes be provided?  ANSWER: Yes. Training for Field Staff and State partners will begin next year.

Get Up To Speed on the Coming Changes!

The Safety Measurement System (SMS) will replace SafeStat as the new tool to measure carriers’ safety performance when CSA 2010 rolls out next year.  SMS uses all safety-based inspection violations and applies time weighting and severity weighting to calculate measures. Each month, SMS measures two years of crash, inspection and violation data to evaluate carrier performance in seven safety behavior categories, called BASICS (Behavioral Analysis and Safety Improvement Categories).  The SMS uses the measures to assign a percentile ranking for all carriers within each BASIC. Today, SMS is working well in the six Operational Model test states.

FMCSA has launched a new website to serve as the communications center piece for its program CSA 2010. The new site includes the following:

• General information about the CSA 2010
• Outreach material including fact sheets, brochures, and briefings
• Frequently Asked Questions about CSA 2010

Do you have feedback about the site or can’t find a certain piece of information? Contact us via email to send us your comments or questions.

FMCSA’s CSA 2010 initiative has grabbed the attention of the American Trucking Associations, one of the largest and most influential trucking organizations in the United States.  ATA has assembled a working group of safety directors from its member companies to help prepare for CSA 2010.

On Wednesday, August 5th, FMCSA met with members of that group as part of the Agency’s ongoing effort to reach out to industry stakeholders about upcoming CSA 2010 changes.  During the meeting, FMCSA and ATA discussed a range of topics including the timing of roll-out and the weighting of violations in the CSA 2010 Safety Measurement System (SMS).

Intervention Managers from the six test states met with FMCSA CSA 2010 Development Team members last week to share lessons learned, esolve issues, and make practical improvements to the new operational model in continued preparation for national roll out next year.

The Federal-State Working Group (FSWG) has been in place since the beginning of the test. Captain Mark Savage of the Colorado State Patrol reports that: "CSA 2010 was developed from the ground level up with close collaboration between state partners and federal enforcement personnel and from that perspective it is unique and effective." According to Savage, CSA 2010 has "...increased the integrity of my entire program in Colorado because of the increased emphasis, not just on investigations, but also on the data that’s collected on the roadside and thereby focusing more attention and resources towards the most important goal of the program, reducing crashes."

The Ontario Trucking Association (OTA) is not only Canada’s largest trucking organization, it is also the third largest in all of North America. OTA is an important FMCSA stakeholder.

On July 21, 2009, Bryan Price, Senior Transportation Specialist at FMCSA, led a Webinar on CSA 2010 for OTA members. His presentation included an overview of the program as well as an update on the Operational Model Test currently underway.

One area of interest by the OTA membership was the inclusion of time-weighted, on-road safety performance data using all safety-based violations in determining scores through the new Safety Measurement System (SMS). This is a new feature in CSA 2010. Price explained, “FMCSA wants results to be as reflective as possible of a carrier's current safety status, and does not want to overwhelm the system with old data which may disproportionately influence the scores if the carrier has improved over the two year period.

Similar CSA 2010 outreach efforts to stakeholders will continue to take place throughout the year.

FMCSA is sending warning letters to carriers in the six test states whose on-road safety performance data indicates a safety problem in one or more of the Behavioral Analysis Safety Information Categories (BASICs) - and the responses have been notably positive!

Of the 3,000 warning letters sent to date, over 45% of carriers receiving them have logged in to view their safety scores. Daniel Drexler, Minnesota Division Administrator, a test state DA, observed, "As a result of the warning letters sent to Minnesota carriers, we have spoken with many carrier officials who thanked us for notifying them about their safety problems."

According to Drexler, "We found that once carrier officials understand that the new system enables them to identify their problem drivers, a light goes on.  They see CSA 2010 as a tool to reinforce for drivers the importance of roadside inspections, and to hold drivers accountable for on-road safety performance, and therefore improve their companies’ overall safety performance."

On June 22, Federal and State Operational Model test Safety Investigators (SI) met via teleconference to share best practices. In discussions about changes to work processes driven by the new business processes, the SIs did not express any major concerns, supporting the CSA 2010 workforce analysis results that grades and jobs are safe!

In fact SIs' jobs in CSA 2010 will have an even greater impact on safety and will be more interesting and diverse due to the array of interventions available to deal with safety issues!

The SIs also focused on the response from carriers in test states. They reported that carriers appreciated the additional safety guidance the CSA 2010 process offers, and in particular, are open to assistance about how to address problems in order to improve safe travel for commercial vehicle drivers and the motoring public.

This summer’s field staff in-service training includes a forum for Operation Model (OpModel) test participants to share their experiences and to engage in an open exchange of questions and answers with their non-test counterparts.  Recently, when State Safety Enforcement Investigator, Steff Copeland was asked to leave just one thought with her peers about her experience with CSA 2010, she answered:

"Keep an open mind...CSA 2010 is a change but it’s a very effective change and change can be good. It is an efficient and effective way to contact carriers and make a difference."

-Steff Copeland, State Safety Enforcement Investigator, Missouri DOT

The peer-to-peer sessions will provide field staff with a direct opportunity to hear even more from their OpModel test counterparts about the issues that are most important to them!

Training for additional test state field staff was conducted last week in Massachusetts and a second session will be offered in Missouri in July. Representatives from the operational model test states are joining the CSA 2010 Training Team to share their on-the-ground knowledge and experience by training their peers.

Jim Dearing, a Missouri Safety Investigator and new CSA 2010 instructor states, “As an SI in one of the original test states, I was a vocal skeptic early on. However, my experience over the past 18 months has changed my mind. I believe that the new approach to the investigative process and its associated applications are the most dynamic and innovative compilation of tools and resources FMCSA has developed in its history. I am not only enthusiastic but proud to be involved in educating others as the Agency prepares for rollout nationwide.”

FMCSA field staff and state partners will all receive this CSA 2010 training as a key part of implementation next year! The training includes real-world examples focusing on investigations using CSA 2010’s approach, and provides hands-on sessions to introduce the new measurement system and new tools.

Safety Investigators from Colorado, Georgia, Missouri, and New Jersey Division Offices and State Partner organizations recently met in Denver to lend their real-world expertise to the development of software tools that will be used in the field to support CSA 2010 interventions when CSA 2010 rolls out next year.

With participation from FMCSA's IT Development Division, and technical support from North Dakota State University and the Volpe Center, the group reviewed the proposed CSA 2010 intervention process, from pre-investigation through follow-up. Their essential input provided on-the-ground knowledge of how the next generation suite of tools can be developed to support CSA 2010 roll out next year!

Comprehensive Safety Analysis (CSA 2010) is an FMCSA initiative to improve large truck and bus safety and ultimately reduce crashes, injuries and fatalities. At a workshop May 20-21, experts from FMCSA’s IT Development Division and the CSA 2010 Program collaborated on next generation safety applications that will deliver the most up-to-date, comprehensive information available on drivers and carriers to safety investigators nationwide when CSA 2010 rolls out next year.

"Having all of the motor carriers’ data in one central location, including crash data, inspection data, driver information, etc. is a very critical management tool to ensure we’re targeting the right carriers for the most efficient and effective interventions." Dave Yessen, Federal Programs Manager New Jersey Division (CSA 2010 Interventions Manager)