Volume 5, Issue 3 Quarter 3, 2014 call on washington LSU1 Tiger Truck ❘ 34 Hour Restart ❘ CDL BMI Debacle ❘ CSA State Inequities #1 Volvo dealer in New Orleans parts • Service • Sales • leasing • rental used and new • Medium duty and heavy duty Official New Volvo Rental & Leasing Company (RMB Leasing of Louisiana) meet our new volvo sales manager, R MARK STONE M B Leasing & Rental 6121 Jefferson Highway • New Orleans, LA general manager Glen Koch 504-818-1818 Parts P.J. Tamporello Parts Manager 504-734-3589 Service Frank Martin Service Manager 504-734-3587 Sales Mike Spinato Commercial Truck Manager 504-908-6146 Sales Mark Stone Volvo Sales Manager 504-616-9333 Q3 2014 Open Road 1 Volume Pricing Service after the Sale Fleet Specialist We Carry New & Used • Frac Tanks • Crude Oil Trailers • Vacuum Trailers • Aluminum Water Trailers Lowboys • Pneumatic Trailers • Drop Deck Trailers • Flatbed Trailers LAFAYETTE 1101 Doyle Melancon Ext • Breaux Bridge, LA 70517 Main: 337-442-1600 • Watts: 877-237-0448 Service: 337-442-1681 • Parts: 337-442-1680 2 Open Road Q3 2014 NEW ORLEANS 10459 Airline, St. Rose, LA 70087 • I-130 Exit 2 - Kenner Main: 504-467-9630 • Watts: 800-969-6225 Service: 504-467-9311 • Parts: 504-467-9402 of table CONTENTS Table of Contents FEATURES LSU 1: Trucking for the Tigers By Timothy Boone LPB Public Square Highway Funding “Down the Road: Our Transportation Future” Looking Back... 18 9 10 75 Years 34 Hour Restart HOS Changes Get Bipartisan Senate Support By Timothy Boone What is Your BMI? 12 13 CDI Medical Certificate Debacle By Ted Griggs Improving Trucking’s Image Join the Movement! Elizabeth Barna, Guest Writer, ATA COVER STORY Call on Washington By Steve Wheeler I-12 Road Construction Resurfaces By Diana Pietrogallo 2014 Convention Uneven Playing Field Inconsistent State CSA Enforcement By Ted Griggs 7 National Truck Driver Appreciation Week LMTA Recognizes Truck Drivers Million Mile Drivers Safe Drivers Deserve Recognition By Olivia McClure Judicial Climate in Louisiana 17 18 20 23 28 32 33 34 DEPARTMENTS From the Executive Director: By Cathy Gautreaux Advertiser Resource Index Calendar of Events New LMTA Members 20 23 5 36 36 36 Q3 2014 Open Road 3 Heavy, Medium, Light Duty, and Lowboy Towing and Recovery Towing & Recovery, Inc. no job too large 45+ Years in Business We don’t want an arm or a leg, we just want your tows! Proud Members of: Louisiana Motor Transport Association American Trucking Associations Baton Rouge Incident Management Committe Gulf Region Intelligent Transportation Society Better Business Bureau 4 Open Q3 T-Chek, 2014 and all major credit cards. We accept EFS, Road Comchek, www.roadrunnerbr.com Open Road is owned by the Louisiana Motor Transport Association and published four times a year. For more information, contact the LMTA at 225-928-5682. publisher Staci Buhler letter from the executive director [email protected] executive editor Cathy F. Gautreaux [email protected] creative director Kristin Perpignano [email protected] production editor Dana P. Weidman [email protected] photographer John Ballance [email protected] advertising DIRECTOR Lisa Busceme [email protected] contributing writers Ted Griggs, Diana Pietrogallo, Olivia McClure, Steve Wheeler Executive Director Cathy F. Gautreaux administrative services Dana P. Weidman Bookkeeper Patricia Mouch [email protected] LMTA Officers Ellis Vliet Chairman of the Board Turner Industries Group, LLC Greg Morrison PRESIDENT Quality Transport, Inc. Steve Sievert SECRETARY Southern Tire Mart Truck Centers Terry Warren 1ST VICE PRESIDENT Aeropres Corporation Sam Lampo Treasurer Quality Transport, Inc. John Austin 2ND VICE PRESIDENT Bengal Transportation Services, LLC Judy Smart VICE PRESIDENT AT LARGE RoadRunner Towing & Recovery, Inc. John Majors ATA Vice President Quality Transport, Inc. Greg Stewart ATA VICE PRESIDENTALTERNATE Safeway Transportation “We cannot expect people to have respect for law and order until we teach respect to those we have entrusted to enforce those laws.” ― – Hunter S. Thompson On August 31, 1939, the Louisiana Motor Transport Association was created by a savvy group of business men who needed a voice. They needed an organization to represent them. To tell their story. To earn the respect of elected and appointed officials in Louisiana and in Washington, D.C. That was 75 years ago – the mission is the same but the playbook has changed. Why is there a need for a “National Truck Driver Appreciation Week” (page 32) and the “Million Mile Safe Driver initiative” (page 33)? Because the public and elected officials need to be reminded that the person behind the wheel of a truck delivering goods, supplies and services…deserves a little respect. And, sometimes the people in this industry need a gentle reminder that self-respect goes a long way in earning respect from others. Respect is revealed in many ways. It can be the invitation to have LMTA representatives participate in the LPB Public Square televised debate on transportation funding (pg. 9), getting a U.S. Senator to defend our Hours of Service issue on the Senate floor (pg. 11) or in the collaboration between the trucking industry and LA-DOTD on future highway projects – before the projects are built (pg. 20). The respect that LMTA has earned over the past 75 years has been the result of a lot of hard work by many, many people – fighting for the issues, defending our industry and ultimately embracing change. Although much has changed in the trucking industry over the past 75 years, the principles upon which our organization was built continue today as a testament to our great industry: Take the high road. Do the right thing for the right reasons in the right way. Never turn a blind eye to that which is unjust. And, never, never, never give up. Over the next few issues of the LMTA OPEN ROAD magazine, we will share with you memories of our past – reminders of what was a grand time for a great organization now celebrating its Diamond Anniversary. To those that came before us with a vision for the future…our hats off to you. For those who follow us, take note. You’ve got some big shoes to fill… Louisiana Motor Transport Association (LMTA) is a Louisiana corporation of trucking companies, private carrier fleets and businesses which serve or supply the trucking industry. LMTA serves these companies as a government affairs representative before legislative, regulatory and executive branches of government on issues that affect the trucking industry. The association also provides public relations services and serves as a forum for industry meetings and membership relations. For information contact LMTA at: Louisiana Motor Transport Association, Inc. 4838 Bennington Avenue • PO Box 80278 Baton Rouge, LA 70898 • Phone: 225-928-5682 • Fax: 225-928-0500 www.louisianatrucking.com Cathy F. Gautreaux LMTA Executive Director Q3 2014 Open Road 5 6 Open Road Q3 2014 W ith LSU football season back in full swing, the purple and gold Peterbilt truck dubbed “LSU 1” is back on the highways across the South, helping haul equipment for the Tiger football team. LSU has had the truck for 10 years now, said equipment manager Greg Stringfellow. Before that, the university rented trucks to transport football equipment when the Tigers had road games. The truck handles all the equipment the football team needs for a game, including medical supplies. “It’s a rolling equipment locker,” said Bobby Duke, the primary driver for LSU 1. Duke is a retired truck driver with almost 34 years of experience working with lines such as Consolidated Freightways and Red Ball. Brett Waguespack is the secondary driver. Duke has been driving LSU 1 since the university acquired it in 2004. He got the job based on his experience and his friendship with Jeff Boss, LSU’s late longtime equipment manager. “It’s something to drive, it’s just different,” Duke said. “You have people running up besides you taking pictures. It’s just fans having a good time, but you’ve got to watch people and be real careful.” The amount of miles LSU 1 gets driven is dependent upon the Tigers’ football schedule. While it mainly visits Southeastern Conference schools, the truck has traveled cross-country, like when LSU opened the 2009 season in Seattle against the University of Washington. That 44-hour trip was tracked by a Facebook page and by the LSU Athletic Department. Duke said there have been incidents of vandalism on the truck from opposing fans. But he wouldn’t say at which schools this happened. “You find nicks and stuff on the truck,” he said. Several other Southeastern Conference schools have equipment trucks, including Alabama, Auburn and Florida. Like LSU 1, those vehicles are outfitted with eye-catching graphics that promote the football team and its rich history. “You would be shocked at how well we all get along,” said Duke. It costs the athletic department about $18,000 a year to operate and maintain LSU 1, Stringfellow said. The truck is like any other distance carrier, and is impacted by hours of service regulation and subject to inspections. A local distributor handles cleaning LSU 1. “They take a lot of pride in the cleanliness of the truck,” Stringfellow said. When the truck isn’t in service, it’s warehoused at the Football Operations building. Generally, it isn’t used for other sports. That’s because of the sheer volume of equipment a college football team needs, compared to other sports like basketball or baseball, which have fewer players and less gear. Generally LSU tries to have the truck arrive at a stadium about 6 hours ahead of the Tiger football team. It takes about 2 hours to load and unload the truck, Stringfellow said. For some big bowl games, when the team needs to be in a city for several days of practices and events, LSU will send a second truck. One of the worst moments happened when Duke was coming back from the LSU-West Virginia game in 2011. “I was behind a vehicle that was moving a trailer-load of stuff stacked high,” he said. “They put a tire and a rim back there on top of the stuff. When they hit some bumps in the road, the tire bumped off, hit the ground and came right back up and hit the top of the cab.” The tire knocked LSU 1’s radio out and landed in the sleeper. Luckily, it didn’t knock out the windshield glass, so Duke was able to bring the truck in. “So far, knock wood, that’s been about the most exciting time I’ve had with it.” Duke said he makes sure to train the other drivers who handle LSU 1 to be careful. “It’s like flying an airplane. You’ve got to watch it every second.”K Photo by Chris Parent, LSU Athletics trucking for the tigers By Open Timothy Q3 2014 RoadBoone 7 BUILT FOR THE WORK YOU DO! “The sales team is very knowledgable.” BUILT FOR YOUR BUSINESS For Laurie Doiron, owner of Ag Logistics, in White Castle, Louisiana, hauling sugar is her business. The reliability and uptime of her truck fleet is a vital part of keeping her young company profitable. During harvest season, Ag Logistics hauls sugar cane for 100 days straight, 24 hours a day. Todd Doiron, Operations Manager, purchased their first set of Cat® CT660 Vocational Trucks in early 2014, and noted, “I have not asked a question that I have not got an answer for.” “We steered toward Cat trucks because of the service.” BUILT TO HELP YOU GET THERE In Doiron’s line of work, communication is key and helps to make their business a success. Doiron says he enjoys working with Louisiana Cat because they “hold true to their word.” Ag Logistics hauls 1.7 million tons of sugar cane during harvest season, even if one of the trucks break. “The service department at Louisiana Cat communicates back and forth with us and that helps us continue to be able to do our job.” If a problem arises with the trucks, Doiron is confident that the Louisiana Cat service department can fix the problem right away. “We have 10 more on order right now.” BUILT TO DELIVER Ag Logistics currently owns three Cat CT660 Vocational Trucks. Doiron has been so impressed with the trucks, adding that “they’re running well and we currently have 10 more on order right now.” Discover for yourself what Laurie and Todd Doiron already know ... Louisiana Cat not only offers the best truck in the business, but stands behind it with reliable and unrivaled dealer support, factory trained technicians and excellent parts availability. Give us a call today to learn how the Cat CT660 Vocational Truck can benefit your business. Alexandria Bossier City Monroe 866-843-7440 Lafayette Prairieville Lake Charles Reserve www.LouisianaCat.com © 2014 Caterpillar. All Rights Reserved. CAT, CATERPILLAR, BUILT FOR IT, their respective logos, “Caterpillar Yellow,” the “Power Edge” trade dress as well as corporate and product identity used herein, are trademarks of Caterpillar and may not be used without permission. 8 Open Road Q3 2014 ag logistics full page.indd 1 8/18/2014 11:09:37 AM Louisiana collects $630 million per year in Federal highway dollars and 20-cents from each gallon of gasoline purchased for its own transportation fund. But the state is spending only $27 million a year on highway preservation, well below the $70 million or so spent in recent years. In the next 30 years, Louisiana's economic health and quality of life may be at risk because of transportation funding challenges. What should the state's transportation priorities be? Should the current state gasoline sales tax be increased? Or is it time for a new funding stream at both the state and federal level? LMTA was honored to be asked to participate in the Louisiana Public Square, a Louisiana Public Broadcasting feature that looked for answers on "Down the Road: Our Transportation Future". The forum aired Wednesday, August 27th. Panelists included: Senator Robert Adley, R-Benton; Senate Transportation Committee Dr. Kam Movassaghi, former DOTD Secretary and President of Fenstermaker & Associates Representative Karen St. Germain, D-Plaquemine; House Transportation, Committee Rachel DiResto, Executive V.P. of the Center for Planning Excellence The program also included interviews with Sherri LeBas, Secretary of the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development (DOTD); Representative Karen St. Germain, D-Plaquemine; Ascension Parish President Tommy Martinez; Boo Thomas, President of the Center for Planning Excellence, and Cathy Gautreaux with the Louisiana Motor Transport Association. Beth Courtney, LPB CEO, and Robert Travis Scott, President of the Public Affairs Research Council of Louisiana moderated the discussion. LMTA President Greg Morrison, Quality Transport, Bossier City; LMTA Leadership Council President Mitch Guillot, Triple G Express, Jefferson and LMTA Vice PresidentAt Large Judy Smart, Roadrunner Towing & Recovery actively participated in the audience representing LMTA and the trucking industry For more information visit www.lpb.org. K Q3 2014 Open Road 9 P P n n P L L L p p 0 P 0 P 0 P p p n P L n 0 P 0 T c c 0 0 0 T T T E E c 9 : : T : p p p T T 9 p T E c 9 9 E : Q3 2014 Open Road 11 34 Hour Restart hos changes get bipartisan Senate support By Timothy Boone A n amendment that would suspend a controversial new regulation that mandates when truck drivers should get rest has been approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee, thanks to the bipartisan efforts of Senators Mary Landrieu (D-Louisiana) and Susan Collins (R-Maine). trucking issue, but a supply chain issue.” The committee voted 21-9 to adopt Collins’ amendment to the funding bill for the Departments of Transportation and Housing Development, which would rescind a July 2013 provision that required hours of service restart include two overnight rest periods between 1 a.m. and 5 a.m. The HOS restart would be suspended for one year while the Department of Transportation conducted a study on the effectiveness of the regulations. Collins has said the new rules were put in place without adequate data to back them up. The one year limit is a function of the fact that the bill covers the federal DOT budget for one year. “That’s when they work, when it’s the best time to drive,” he said. “It’s more productive for them to get the job done in that time.” Chris Spear, Vice President and chief of legislative affairs for the American Trucking Associations, said the HOS regulations are “clearly not only a The new regulations have forced drivers off of highways during late night hours, when traffic is minimal, and on the roads during the prime times for commuter activity. That’s caused more traffic congestion and increased emissions. “The supply chain is feeling the impact, carriers are feeling the impact,” Spear said. “If they rely on logistics, they’re feeling the impact of this inflexible requirement.” Spear said truck drivers are like hospital emergency room workers and other people who are used to working overnights. The ATA lobbied Congress on behalf of members of all sizes, large and small, who have been affected by the regulation. “This is affecting customers such as grocers, beverage wholesalers, timber and steel,” he said. “This is a member-driven issue.” While Congress has been subject to bitter partisan bickering, support for Collins’ amendment crossed party lines. Landrieu was one of seven Democrats to vote for the bill. “I honestly believe that what Senator Collins and I and others are trying to do is going to make the situation that is very unsafe now safer, not less safe,” Landrieu said during floor debate on the issue. She accused the federal Department of Transportation of “government overreach to a point where it is almost visceral”. “We want our highways to be safe, we want our truckers rested, we really don’t like the crowding on our highways, but it’s going a little too far when the federal government starts mandating when workers should sleep,” Landrieu said. “We just can’t go there.” Spear said Landrieu was “very helpful” by injecting common sense to the rulemaking process. “She did a fantastic job of explaining this and pointing out that we need to go back to the drawing board,” he said. “Having this pass a Democrat-led Senate sends a pretty powerful message that this is not a good rule.” While the Collins amendment had the backing of Democrats and Republicans, the funding bill it is attached to has fallen victim to the partisan spending impasse on Capitol Hill. “The bill has not yet passed,” Spear said. Action will probably be taken on the spending bill once the midterm elections are over with. No matter what happens, Spear said the ATA was pleased with the outcome on the amendment. “The future outcome of this is dependant upon politics, which drives a lot of people crazy,” he said. “But the environment we are in, our job is to help association members find a way to get wins.” K what is your bmi? CDL Medical Certificate Debacle By Ted Griggs T rucker Troy Lanegrasse’s unemployment problems started with his new job. The Thibodaux resident had a valid commercial driver’s license and medical card, but his new employer, Acme Truck Line, requires its drivers to get a new physical. Acme sent Lanegrasse to a doctor who promptly denied the trucker’s medical certificate because his body mass index was over 34. The doctor told Lanegrasse he would have to undergo a sleep study to determine whether he suffered from sleep apnea. “If we’re lucky my husband can go back to work in October,” said Julie Lanegrasse, a secretary for Arabie Trucking Services LLC in Thibodaux. “If you’re used to two incomes coming in and you’re down to one, that’s kind of rough.” The Lanegrasses are among many trucking families suffering thanks to confusion over the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s rules for medical exams. Some medical examiners are apparently enforcing a proposed rule the agency issued in 2012. The proposed rule, which FMCSA withdrew almost immediately, would have required drivers to undergo sleep testing if they had a BMI of 35 or higher or a 17-inch neck, 15.5 inches for women. According to the Louisiana Motor Transport Association, some medical examiners have added a new sleep study trigger: weighing 250 pounds or more. That was in June. The trucking industry says there has been no conclusive study supporting those criteria. A lengthy waiting list for the sleep lab meant Lanegrasse didn’t get tested until August. He has to use a Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) machine for a month before he can retake his physical. The industry believes the current disqualification problem lies with the medical examiners’ training. Doctors are being taught to subjectively apply rules that have yet to be put in place. Q3 2014 Open Road 13 Dr. Danielle D. Angeron, a certified medical examiner in Houma, said the FMCSA handbook has around 80 pages of examination guidelines. What the handbook doesn’t contain are those particular triggers – 17-inch neck, BMI of 35 or more, or weight of 250 pounds – for sleep apnea testing. The sleep tests are required only if an examiner thinks them necessary, Angeron said. “It’s the same CDL physical that they’ve been having,” Angeron said. However, there are some differences. FMCSA now requires doctors go through certification. Angeron took a 12-hour online class and then had to pass a test. She took hers in New Orleans. FMCSA also specifies which type of medical conditions have a waiting period and how long that driver can be certified with that condition. If a driver is diagnosed with sleep apnea, he would have to bring in a printout from his CPAP machine showing: • He was using the machine. • He had no symptoms of daytime sleepiness since at least the last reading. 14 Open Road Q3 2014 • He had been on the machine for at least a month. Angeron said some patients have had to have sleep tests but there haven’t been that many. But Arabie Trucking Chief Executive Officer Sandy J. Arabie said the impact on drivers and carriers could be enormous. “It’s going to affect a lot of companies dramatically, including us, once our drivers start coming up for renewal,” Arabie said. “I can guarantee you out of the 30-something drivers I’ve got, I probably only have maybe five drivers that will be able to pass this between body mass index and neck size.” Doctors are being taught to subjectively apply rules that have yet to be put in place. The financial costs to truckers are also very high, Arabie said. A sleep test and a CPAP machine, plus the loss of income, could easily run to $5,000. Julie Lanegrasse said those kinds of expenses are crippling to trucking families, who don’t make that much money. Most drivers’ health insurance won’t cover those expenses, which mean almost all of that money will be out-ofpocket. “It baffles me that they (federal regulators) put this process in place with no answers or remedies on the who, what, when or where about who’s going to pay for this,” Arabie said. Stephen F. Campbell, Commissioner of the Louisiana Office of Motor Vehicles, said the state has no control over the federal rules or the physicians doing the exams. “In the end, we have to accept their medical findings,” Campbell said. “The OMV can’t overturn doctors’ opinions.” Campbell said federal regulators have a different opinion than the trucking industry when it comes to whether the 17-inch neck/35 BMI/250-pound criteria support a diagnosis of sleep apnea. A 2014 study conducted by the University of Pennsylvania and sponsored by the FMCSA and the American Transportation Research Institute, the not-for-profit research group of the American Trucking Associations, found that 28 percent of commercial truck drivers have mild to severe sleep apnea. Campbell said he realizes it’s expensive to get a sleep test and to buy a CPAP machine, and that some truckers don’t have insurance that will cover those expenses. “But we and they are required to follow federal regulations,” Campbell said. The question for drivers and truckers remains what to do when certified medical examiners are enforcing regulations that don’t exist? The ATA and the LMTA are asking Congress to provide some clarity. LMTA Executive Director Cathy Gautreaux said the industry is in something of a stalemate because the fix will have to come from Washington, D.C. Arabie said right now nobody has the answers, and that’s a frightening prospect for carriers and drivers. “You’ve got a whole bunch of people in the trucking business that don’t know this train wreck is coming down the pike,” Arabie said. K DataQ Challenges? we’re pulling for you Contact us at [email protected] (800-417-3552) to discuss how we can have our attorney file your DataQ challenges for FREE. DefenD your company anD your Drivers with a legal Defense plan DesigneD By anD for truckers. Call Jim C. Klepper, Esq. Drivers Legal Plan @DriversLegal 800-417-3552 www.driverslegalplan.com Q3 2014 Open Road 15 Solutions Provider to the Transportation Industry #1 in north AmericA! Thank you for making Southern Tire Mart North America’s largest independent commercial tire dealer. From America’s quality brands to comprehensive maintenance programs to 24/7 roadside assistance we deliver “best in class” service! We have over 60 stores in 9 states and a team committed to meeting your needs, and saving you time and money. 16 CALL 877.STM.TIRE • www.stmtires.com Open Road Q3 2014 The American Trucking Association, along with ACT I, the state trucking associations and other transport professionals launched an industry-wide image movement – Trucking Moves America Forward – to work towards improving the way people view our essential and strong industry. Trucking Moves America Forward is uniting the industry to heighten trucking’s visibility, economic necessity and vibrancy, as well as build pride among the 7 million workers, including 3.2 million professional truck drivers. The long-term movement will shape a positive image for the industry and build the political and grass-root support necessary to strengthen and build a better future. Guest Writer Elisabeth Barna, ATA This initiative is bringing together all facets of the motor transport profession to engage and inform policy makers, industry professionals, the media and the public to educate on how trucking contributes to the nation’s economy, infrastructure, and the everyday lives of all Americans. This is also an internal initiative to honor the pride we have for the men and women in our business who make it all possible. Education is key to the success of Trucking Moves America Forward. A better educated policy maker should make an educated decision when voting on laws and regulations that affect trucking. A better educated reporter should file a fair and balanced news story when reporting on our vital industry. A better educated motorist should change their driving behaviors when putting their keys in the ignition. A trucking industry worker should take pride in their job and their industry. Whether improving the image of the industry or saving lives, this new movement has already seen positive results in both areas. We are putting a human face behind the wheel, under the hood, at the fuel pump and in the office. We are telling our stories, whether a third generation industry executive, a young worker who followed their dream to drive or maintain a big truck, an owner, who as a little boy counted the coins in the terminal’s soda machine or one of the 5.4% percent of women drivers. Your stories all make up this wonderful and passionate industry we call trucking. Join the movement now so that we can tell a powerful story about trucking in America. Trucking Does Move America Forward! Visit www.truckingmovesamerica.com. K Q3 2014 Open Road 17 By Steve Wheeler LMTA members made their annual “Call on 18 Open Road Q3 2014 Washington” the week of September 8, giving Louisiana’s congressional delegation positions and ideas on issues affecting the trucking industry. The group that made the trip to Washington D.C. this year was very large – 16 in all – and each of the LMTA members hit the ground running. The group first met with the American Trucking Association for briefings on industry issues, then met face-toface with both Louisiana Senators – Mary Landrieu and David Vitter – as well as U.S. Representatives John Fleming and House Majority Whip Steve Scalise. The “Callers” on Washington also met with congressional staffers when congressmen weren’t available to meet in person. Key issues discussed this year included hours of service, sleep apnea and the Highway Trust Fund. One business owner who has “Called on Washington” more than once is Glen Guillot, co-owner of Southeastern Motor Freight and Triple G Express in Jefferson. Guillot said that the Call on Washington is designed as a “working meeting” to give LMTA members a chance to actually present their positions on trucking industry issues. Guillot said he went again this year because he had a few points to make. “We go at least once a year,” Guillot said. “We go see our representatives on their own turf. We’re not going just to listen, we’re going to tell them what we think,” he said. “I’m going to let them know what I want.”Guillot said grass roots efforts like the Call on Washington make it easier for national lobbying groups like the ATA to effectively do their jobs. “We’re being shot at all day, every day” in the trucking industry, Guillot said. While the ATA and the LMTA don’t always agree on every issue, they are aligned 95 percent of the time and can present a potent lobbying force, he said. After all, Guillot added, if an industry doesn’t look out for its own interests, who will? John Austin agrees wholeheartedly. This trip was Austin’s second Call on Washington, and he said he plans to make “The Call” a habit. “It’s too important not to make it a habit,” he said. “You’ve got to be proactive. You’ve got to stay on top of things. We’re there fighting for the common interests of our industry,” Austin said. Austin, President of Bengal Transportation Services in Geismar and LMTA Second Vice President, said the meetings with lawmakers in Washington were productive, especially the discussions with Vitter. “I really liked what he had to say,” Austin said. Terry Warren, with Aeropres Corporation in Sibley and LMTA First Vice President, also heeded this year’s Call on Washington. Warren, a firsttime “Caller,” said she didn’t have a political bone in her body before the trip, but admits the experience has now made her much more interested. “I was very impressed,” she said. “I thought it was great.” Warren said she had been to Washington with school groups in the past, but this trip was different. She said she wasn’t sure at first how valuable the meetings with lawmakers would be, “But when we actually met with everyone…they seemed to be very interested and willing to help us. It was very educational for me,” Warren said. “I’ve never been a political person. I’m much more interested in it now.” It’s much more than just a political jaunt, said LMTA Executive Direc- tor Cathy Gautreaux. “We actually discuss current issues impacting the trucking industry today – and request the help of our Congressional delegation to intercede on our behalf.” Gautreaux described how the LMTA group requested that each member of the Louisiana delegation sign a letter to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) directing them to abide by a law passed a year ago that mandated a rulemaking before requiring sleep apnea testing for CDL medical certification. The fact that drivers are losing their jobs every day because the Certified Medical Examiners are requiring sleep apnea tests is the direct result of FMCSA’s blatant disregard for a federal law. Since Congressional action appears to be the only way to stop this abuse of authority, the trucking industry desperately needs our representatives in Washington, D.C. to step up and stop this illegal procedure before more drivers lose their jobs. And, sitting down with them in their offices in D.C. really brings this message home. K Q3 2014 Open Road 19 I-12 Road Construction A By Diana Pietrogallo major east-west route for commerce between Baton Rouge and the neighboring state of Mississippi is about to undergo several major construction projects, all of which require the trucking industry to be aware and begin planning for ways to mitigate the impact on freight movements. The Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development is about to let three contracts for major highway projects in October or November that will certainly impact commercial vehicles during phases of the two-year construction time frame. All of the projects have been in the works for about four years, and it just so happens they all are getting ready at the same time, according to Allison Schilling, district administrator with DOTD. Normally whenever the agency lets a project, it anticipates the project will start about three to four months after, which in this case will be sometime in the first quarter of 2015. The largest project, named French Branch, is a pavement replacement project in Slidell that includes the I-10/12/59 interchange and I-10 East to the West Pearl River Bridge by the Slidell Welcome Center. Schilling describes the expansiveness of the project, explaining, “Construction will stretch down toward New Orleans and the Twin I-12 and US 51-B 20 Open Road Q3 2014 Spans; it’ll go in that six-lane section and pick up where the previous project left off. And it’ll go up north on 59 a little ways—not all the way to Military Road, but a little north of the interchange.” In most cases, DOTD would do an overlay and just break up the existing concrete and resurface it with asphalt. “In this case, since there are so many ramps that go over and under and around, we’re going to completely replace the pavement. It’s a $40 million-plus job,” says Schilling. “This corridor is vital for east/west travel through the state as well as into New Orleans and the Mississippi Gulf Coast region; therefore, communication and a partnership with the freight industry are going to be extremely important to mitigate delays and congestion through the work zones.” The average daily number of vehicles traversing I-10 in the vicinity of this interchange is 67,745. to Airport Road/Northshore Boulevard. It will be similar to the ones currently underway in Livingston Parish, and some of the same methods implemented there will be used to minimize crashes and identify traffic situations before they get bad. In October, DOTD has scheduled to let the project in Hammond at the US-51 Business interchange at the location of the Petro and Pilot Travel Center truck stops. Work will not be done on the interstate but will take place on the ramps and once you exit onto US 51 Business. The existing four-lane configuration will be reduced to one lane in each direction during construction. Work will take about 18 months to complete. “communication and a partnership with the freight industry are going to be extremely important to mitigate delays and congestion through the work zones.” What will complicate traffic are the seven locations with lateral confined spaces—places where the road goes under a bridge and there are no shoulders. In order to complete work in those areas in the quickest way possible, DOTD is going to allow some extended weekend lane closures but will maintain one lane open at all times. The work will be done over 14 weekends of the 700-day contract, taking into account that both sides must be done and giving the contractor one day per lane. “Normally we would do some of the work at night. We are going to be allowing lane closures from Friday afternoon until Monday morning and telling the contractor, ‘You’ve got this many hours to get in there, get the pavement out, and get the new pavement in and open back up to traffic.’ We will have very, very, very stiff penalties in the contract that if they don’t, it’s going to cost them thousands of dollars an hour. We are very serious about this,” stresses Schilling. It is anticipated that there will be some significant delays and backups, so she is being proactive in getting the word out. It’s not known when the work will be scheduled until a contract is in place and they can begin to determine when the lane closures will cause the least impact, but DOTD plans to issue advance notifications beyond the seven-day notice required. At the same time this project is under construction, there will also be another I-12 widening project underway in St. Tammany Parish. It will start at US-11 working westward The project calls for a series of three roundabouts with a median down the middle so there will be no left turns allowed. Drivers will have to make a right turn and negotiate the roundabouts to make a U-turn to get back to the interstate. “We did a study and we looked at all kinds of alternatives. This is the one the local administration wanted; this is the one we thought was the best alternative,” says Schilling. The average daily traffic on I-12 is 54,200; on US 51-B it is 22,300. The US 51-B corridor services a hospital, a university, two large truck stops, and a shopping mall. It also serves as the connection for Ponchatoula to I-12 from the south and downtown Hammond to I-12 from the north. So the improvements will greatly enhance the mobility of this corridor. There are four separate construction zones currently on I-12 in Livingston Parish. One is a widening project from I-12 in Walker to just west of Satsuma, and there is one project that has three separate sites on it: one just east of Satsuma, one that’s just west of Holden and one just west of Albany. There crews have been replacing the approach slabs on several of the bridges and widening the bridges on the inside to maintain traffic when the approach slabs are replaced. Thankfully, these should be wrapping up as the other road projects begin. Q3 2014 Open Road 21 A very valuable lesson was learned with the Livingston projects that will be crucial for the next round of construction zones. When the work zones were first implemented, there were a lot of issues with traffic—cars trying to weave in and out of commercial vehicles, people driving entirely too fast, and there was a very narrow shoulder on the outside that was just two-foot wide. There were a lot of commercial vehicles overturning because they were dropping tires off the outside shoulder. A plan was affected to narrow the lanes and widen the outside shoulder back to four feet. The speed limit was reduced in all of the zones, and commercial vehicles were required to travel in the right outside lane. There was also air enforcement and additional police presence through the work zones. All of those things together have really helped the traffic. There has not been one crash with a commercial vehicle and only minor crashes with passenger cars. “It was a disaster area for about three months. Every time we turned around there were wrecks in the construction zones, com- mercial vehicles were overturned, and backups stretched for miles and miles. It’s significantly improved. It was a joint effort between a lot of agencies and it worked. I think the best decision that was made in all of it was to go back to that four-foot outside shoulder,” says Schilling. “It gave the commercial vehicles a little more room once they went over that white edge line to recover before they dropped a tire and turned over.” Due to the significance of these projects, there will be a presentation by Louisiana State Police and Louisiana The speed limit was reduced in all of the zones, and commercial vehicles were required to travel in the right outside lane...There has not been one crash with a commercial vehicle and only minor crashes with passenger cars. 22 Open Road Q3 2014 Department of Transportation and Development on the I-12 construction zone incident management practices and the projects soon to begin at the LMTA Fall Transportation Conference in Baton Rouge on November 19-20. K Hole Sponsors L & B Transport, LLC Aeropres Corporation, Sibley Lake City Trucking, Lake Charles Agway Systems, Inc., Baton Rouge Larry Verret Trucking Arabie Trucking Service, LLC, Thibodaux Ouchita Fertilizer Division Platinum Sponsors Ater Warehouse, Inc., Ferriday Peterbilt of Louisiana Help, Inc. Breazeale, Sachse & Wilson, Baton Rouge Quality Transport, Inc. Gold Sponsors Carrier Transicold South, St. Rose RLC Trucking, LLC Preferred Materials, Inc. Comdata Network, Inc., Brentwood, TN RoadRunner Towing & Recovery Regions Insurance, Inc. Cummins Mid South, Jackson, MS Royal Sonesta Hotel RoadRunner Towing & Recovery, Inc. Dedicated Transportation, LLC, Lafayette Sandestin Golf and Beach Resort Silver Sponsors Dupre` Logistics, LLC, Lafayette SevenOaks Capitol Associates, LLC FedEx Corporation Electronic Funds Source, LLC, Arlington, TN Southern Information Services Grammer Industries UPS Frisard’s Trucking Company, Gramercy Timmons Truck Center Gulf Coast Business Credit Hay Brothers, Inc., Lake Charles Triple G Express, Inc. Peoplenet Communications Lake City Trucking, Lake Charles Waste Management of LA, Inc. Southern Tire Mart Truck Tire Centers Marchand Construction, Inc., Port Allen Parish Truck Sales, Inc., St. Rose Convention Sponsors Annual Sponsors United Vision Logistics Bronze Sponsors Peterbilt of Louisiana, Baton Rouge Platinum Sponsors Plains Marketing, LP, Houston, TX Cobbs, Allen & Hall of Louisiana, Inc. Quality Transport, Inc., Baton Rouge Cummins Mid South Retif Oil & Fuel, LLC, New Orleans Louisiana CAT SevenOaks Capital Associates, Baton Rouge RoadRunner Towing & Recovery Sumrall’s Hyundai Translead Trailers, Hammond Ryder System, Inc. Timmons Truck Center, Baton Rouge Gold Sponsors Daimler Trucks North America & Martin Truck Center Tri State Refrigeration, Inc., Baton Rouge Bengal Transportation Services, LLC Dupre` Logistics United Engines, LLC, Shreveport Breazeale,Sachse & Wilson, LLP Electronic Funds Source Gulf Coast Business Credit Ergon Trucking Gulf South Insurance Agency Frisard’s Trucking Plains Marketing, LP GE Capital Transportation Finance Port of New Orleans J.J. Keller & Associates Preferred Materials, Inc. Lake City Trucking United Vision Logistics Pilot Flying J Dedicated Transportation Silver Sponsors Quality Transport Doris Hay & Judy Smart Louisiana Tank, Inc. Service Transport Co. Dupre` Logistics, LLC Omnitracs, Inc. SevenOaks Capital Associates Frisard’s Trucking Company, Inc. Quality Transport, Inc. Triple G Express Marriott Grand Hotel Point Clear Resort & Spa USI Southwest Triumph Business Capitol DOOR PRIZE SPONSORS 4-D Partners, LLC Aeropres Corporation Aparicio, Walker & Seeling, Inc. Arabie Trucking Service, LLC C & S Wholesale Grocers Gulf Coast Business Credit Aeropres Corporation All Scrap Metals BancorpSouth Equipment Finance Bengal Transportation Services Bridgestone Bandag Tire Solutions Wal-mart Stores Q3 2014 Open Road 23 24 Open Road Q3 2014 July 31 – August 2 Marriott Grand Hotel Point Clear, AL Q3 2014 Open Road 25 26 Open Road Q3 2014 July 31 – August 2 Marriott Grand Hotel Point Clear, AL Q3 2014 Open Road 27 Uneven Playing Field Inconsistent State CSA Enforcement A By Ted Griggs national initiative designed to improve motor carrier safety through uniform safety metrics isn’t working as regulators planned because states decide the intensity and focus of enforcing the regulations. The finding is part of a recently released study on the Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA) program by the American Transport Research Institute (ATRI), the trucking industry’s not-for-profit research arm. “This validates what we’ve heard anecdotally from a number of carriers, and that is that these (states’) differing priorities have a very real, quantifiable impact on carrier and driver CSA scores,” said Rebecca Brewster, President and Chief Operating Officer of ATRI. “The scores have nothing to do with the carrier’s safety performance. It’s just a matter of where they run their miles … and what those states’ priorities are.” Each state has a reason for its enforcement focus. In many cases enforcement is based on the state’s crash experience. Some states focus on specific violations because research, such as ATRI’s crash-predictors study, shows those violations have a higher relationship to crash risk. Other states may target seat-belt use because the state has designed and funded a marketing campaign to improve that. So the different approaches are understandable, Brewster said. The problem is the 50 states/50 enforcement-strategies approach undermines the CSA program, she said. A na- 28 Open Road Q3 2014 CSA? eal source. g time there hile CSA does n everyone’s ow: ow FMCSA csa.dot.gov. ons. or vehicles r” in the away. ter; keep rogram ov. up-to-date csa.dot.gov. ATTENTION A WAY TO MEASURE SAFETY tional standardized safety assessment program can’t provide truly uniform scoring for carriers and drivers because each state has different priorities and issues violations at a different rate. SMART DRIVERS KNOW THE FACTS Evaluating the Impact of Commercial Motor Vehicle Enforcement Disparities on Carrier Safety Performance looks at the five publicly available Behavior Analysis and Safety Improvement Categories, or BASICs. The study measures how each state focuses on a specific category. For example, for the unsafe driving BASIC, Massachusetts issues the most violations while Mississippi issued the fewest. This means a carrier who operates all its mileage in Massachusetts will have a much higher unsafe driver BASIC driving score than a carrier that operates all its mileage in Mississippi, Brewster said. The state or states where a carrier operates and those states’ enforcement priorities determine the BASIC score more than the carrier’s actual safety performance. “A carrier’s safety performance or a driver’s safety performance doesn’t necessarily change from state to state. Your vehicle doesn’t suddenly fall apart when you cross into Ohio from Indiana,” Brewster said. “But if you look at the violation experience from one state to the next, you may see a very different measure because of what that state is looking at in terms of their violation priorities.” The study tackles an issue the trucking industry has wrestled with since the CSA regulations came out in 2010. ATRI’s Research Advisory Committee, an independent group of industry stakeholders that includes motor carriers, industry suppliers, law enforcement, driver groups, and state and federal officials, identified enforcement disparities as the top research issue for 2013. However, critics say the study raises questions about how well the industry research group understands the CSA program. They say that the ATRI study incorrectly characterizes redflag violations, which are not necessarily crash-causing violations but driver violations that warrant additional investigation. In addition, ATRI says both drivers and carriers receive Behavioral Analysis and Safety Improvement Category scores, but Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s public Safety Measurement System scores apply only to carriers. “Safety is our top priority, and analysis shows that CSA’s Safety Measurement System is effectively working to target high-risk carriers for interventions including more frequent inspections, warning letters and comprehensive investigations,” said FMCSA spokesman Duane DeBruyne. FMCSA officials say the program has cut violations-perroadside inspection by 14 percent and driver violations by 17 percent. The agency will continue to consider options to enhance “this important tool” and work with law enforcement to analyze and improve the quality and consistency of safety data nationwide, DeBruyne said. The American Trucking Associations has been a major critic of the enforcement of the CSA program. The industry group said it has taken pains to point out the program’s positive results. Those include increasing carriers’ and drivers’ focus on safety, as well as shifting FMCSA’s “The scores have nothing to do with the carrier’s safety performance. It’s just a matter of where they run their miles … and what those states’ priorities are.” Q3 2014 Open Road 29 approach from a paperwork-centered program to one that’s performance-based. But the trucking industry worries that carrier data posted on the FMCSA website is being misunderstood or mis- However, in late August, the trucking associations called on FMCSA to remove the CSA fleet-monitoring-system scores from the agency’s website. The trucking industry group cited research from the Government Accountability Office that says FMCSA lacks sufficient safety performance information on most motor carriers to make reliable comparisons to other carriers. The problem is the 50 states/50 enforcementstrategies approach undermines the CSA program... because each state has different priorities and issues violations at a different rate. construed. FMCSA officials have admitted some safe companies have high scores and some unsafe companies have low scores. But the federal agency says that overall the program is doing what it should: improving safety. This lack of data creates the likelihood that “many SMS scores do not represent an accurate or precise safety assessment” for a carrier, according to the GAO. Brewster said the cost of the uneven safety playing field, for drivers or carriers, is difficult to quantify. For the Most Reliable Truck and Trailer Refrigeration Equipment, Service and Rentals. We’ve got you covered... www.ctsouth.com The costs don’t come from just the violations but from the potential business impacts. Customers may be making business determinations based on the publicly available BASIC scores, Brewster said. But those scores may not accurately represent a carrier’s safety performance because the BASICS don’t necessarily work. Two of the BASICS, for example, don’t accurately predict crash risk, and BASIC scores are affected by the states in which carriers operate and not necessarily safety performance. Visit our newest location: 190 Park Place St. Rose, LA 70087 ph: 504.496.0090 1789 Forest Parkway Atlanta, GA 30260 ph: 404.968.3130 944 Mahaffey Road Port Allen, LA 70767 ph: 225.357.3360 1515 Cherry St. Knoxville, TN 37917 ph: 865.637.9202 500 Daniel Payne Drive Birmingham, AL 35214 ph: 205.328.7278 5930 Rangeline Road Theodore, AL 36617 ph: 251.443.6844 3301 Cummings Road Chattanooga, TN 37419 ph: 423.421.3365 866 Longwood Drive Richmond Hill, GA 31324 ph: 912.756.2873 ©2011 Carrier Corporation • A member of the United Technologies Corporation family. Stock Symbol UTX. 30 Open Road Q3 2014 “Those basic scores are not telling an accurate story about your safety performance. But potential customers are making determinations on whether or not to use your fleet based on those publicly available basics,” Brewster said. “Naturally you could see an additional financial impact.” The solution? One suggestion is placing more focus on enforcement involving crash-predictor behaviors, since reducing accidents is everyone’s goal, Brewster said. Prioritizing crash-predictor enforcement activities rather than focusing on red-flag violations would move the country closer to the shared objective of reducing crashes. In the study, ATRI compared the red-flag violations, the breaches the FMCSA considers the most egregious, with those the trucking industry researchers identified in its crash-predictor study. ATRI looked at the crash rates in the Top 10 states for red-flag violation enforcement versus the Top 10 states in terms of enforcing crash-predictor violations. “And what we found is the ones that focused more on crash predictor behaviors had lower crash rates,” Brewster said. Brewster said enforcement disparities could be leveled out with a more equitable distribution of enforcement priorities across the states. Eliminating the “skewed focus” on a specific set of violations among different states would shift everyone more towards the norm. “There would be less of an impact on carriers…and therefore you would get a truer picture of carrier safety performance,” Brewster said. ATRI’s research has also shown that traffic enforcement is more effective than roadside inspections when it comes to preventing crashes. That’s an area that Louisiana could emphasize more, Brewster said. Louisiana is committing more funding to commercial motor vehicle enforcement than most other states – $1.24 for every federal dollar received – but the study’s findings suggest greater traffic enforcement could help. Louisiana ranked No. 30 in traffic enforcement with 1.7 actions per million vehicle miles traveled, or MVMT. Louisiana was 30 percent below the national average. The state’s enforcement personnel conducted 1.7 traffic stops per million vehicle miles traveled, or MVMT. K WE VALUE THE SAFETY OF YOUR COMPANY AND YOUR DRIVERS We give you tools to reduce crashes and save lives. Our safety professionals are there to consult with you on your company’s safety program which includes assisting you with your regularly scheduled educational seminars, keeping you informed on the latest safety and risk management techniques and regulatory changes in the trucking industry. We understand your business. Since trucking is all we do, we know the importance of keeping your trucks moving safely. Our ValueDriven® Company program, which includes modules on safe driving, health, leadership, and operations, is designed to easily help you create and maintain a safety culture within your organization. We help keep you moving. We provide your drivers with techniques to improve the overall driving experience with tips on staying alert, eating right, proper lifting, and getting enough exercise. SAFETY IS OUR PASSION Great West Casualty Company — No matter where the road takes you, we’re with you for the long haul. TO FIND AN AGENT VISIT GWCCNET.COM AND CLICK ON “FIND AN AGENT” Not available in all states. All policy terms, conditions, definitions, and exclusions apply to this coverage. Please see your agent for exact provisions. Safety Half Page Color.indd 1 GREAT WEST CASUALTY COMPANY The Difference is Service 800-228-8053 800-228-8053 gwccnet.com gwccnet.com 4/9/2014 1:50:31 PM Q3 2014 Open Road 31 September 14-20, 2014 L M TA R ecogni z es T ruck D rivers T he Louisiana Motor Transport Association, along with the American Trucking Associations and the entire trucking industry, honored the 3.1 million professional truck drivers that deliver America’s freight safely and securely everyday during National Truck Driver Appreciation Week – a program that began in 1998! Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal issued a proclamation recognizing September 14-20, 2014 as National Truck Driver Appreciation Week in Louisiana. This proclamation recognized the 90,000 men and women professional truck drivers of the state of Louisiana that safely deliver more than 805,047 tons of freight each day to over 78% Louisiana communities who depend solely on the professional truck drivers to receive their goods. Governor Jindal joined Governor's from other states throughout the nation in recognizing National Truck Driver Appreciation Week. There are over 3.1 million professional truck drivers’ nationwide logging close to 398 Billion miles each year 32 Open Road Q3 2014 and delivering approximately 9.2 billion tons of freight. Professional truck drivers keep this country moving. On Wednesday, September 17th the LMTA Safety Management Council joined Cash Magic Truck Plaza & Casino, Razorback Rentals and Mears Sand & Gravel in Denham Springs to host a “Safety Break” honoring Louisiana’s truck drivers. Drivers were treated to a lunch of pastalaya, special gift bags and door prizes. A great group volunteered to help thank truck drivers for their continued commitment to safety. Special thanks to Cash Magic Truck Plaza & Casino, Razorback Rentals and Mears Sand & Gravel and the LMTA Safety Management Council members who took time from their busy schedules to help make this event successful. Also thanks to all of the companies who supplied items for the gift bags. Our 2014 NTDAW promotion was quite a success. We hope that your company took a moment to recognize the significant contributions of our professional truck drivers. The efficiency and safety that these drivers guarantee allow businesses and American citizens to confidently ship goods across state lines and throughout America. K Million Mile Drivers Safe Drivers Deserve Recognition By Olivia McClure P rofessional truck drivers are among the safest drivers on the road, and most have the records to prove it. But that may not be the impression visitors to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s office get, as they’ll be greeted by a poster featuring nearly 130 photos of people who were killed in truck-related accidents. To counteract the potential negative effects of that poster, the American Trucking Associations has launched “Million Mile Drivers”. With the help of state trucking associations, ATA is collecting names of truckers who have logged one million miles without an accident. The list will be made into a poster and presented to FMCSA with hopes that the administration will display it. the small percentage of truckers who are involved in wrecks can stick in the mind of the public,” Osiecki said. “That’s what we fight against every day.” “There are plenty of drivers who are safe, and they should be recognized,” said Dave Osiecki, ATA executive vice president and chief of national advocacy. “We want to turn the negative impression some people have of trucks into something more positive.” Elisabeth Barna said that the image of the trucking profession as a dangerous one is potentially harmful to the economy because trucks move vital resources across the country. Further, there are good career options in the industry that are not limited to driving — for example, information technology needs for trucking companies are growing — that people should be aware of and willing to consider. The FMCSA poster has been displayed for the past couple of years at the administration’s Washington, D.C., headquarters. FMCSA promotes safety to prevent crashes involving 18-wheelers and buses, which is an honorable mission but not an excuse to sensationalize the deaths of accident victims, Osiecki said. “Most people probably realize that truck driving is a job that is essential to the economy, but Osiecki said the FMCSA poster offended many in the trucking industry because companies spend a considerable amount of time and money to ensure the safety of their drivers and other motorists. “There is a big image problem,” she said. “We haven’t always been good about telling our stories, so people don’t always understand there is someone behind the wheel in the cab, and they think it’s just a big piece of steel coming down the highway. They may not realize they’re professional drivers and have been trained.” “Million Mile Drivers” is one way ATA “puts a human face on the industry,” Barna said. Helping the motoring public understand the truck driver’s perspective is important because safe roads are the responsibility of all drivers. “Million Mile Drivers is a great opportunity to showcase these drivers, and for them, it’s an honor to be part of that club,” Barna said. Osiecki said companies can share the name of drivers who haven’t had an accident for one million or more miles by filling out a form that has been distributed to all state trucking associations, including the Louisiana Motor Transport Association. Drivers don’t have to be a member of ATA or their state association to participate. While there aren’t any rewards in addition to being included on the poster, Osiecki said that alone is very important. “Giving incentives and rewarding them so they continue to be safe drivers is a positive step,” he said. K Q3 2014 Open Road 33 By Timothy Boone T he trucking industry is “the canary in the coal mine” that feels the biggest impact from the parts of Louisiana’s judicial climate that are out of line with other states, said the head of the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry. Stephen Waguespack, LABI president, said the industry is impacted by Louisiana’s auto insurance rates and the niche created by some trial lawyer firms targeting trucking companies. “The trucking industry is a sitting duck for issues like this,” he said. LABI recently issued a report analyzing the state’s judicial climate and identifying areas for improvement. “The big take away for me is the costs our poor legal climate puts on consumers,” Waguespack said. “It’s a hidden tax.” That tax includes auto insurance rates that are always ranked as some of the highest in the country, even though Louisiana has some of the safest roads in the nation, Waguespack said. 34 Open Road Q3 2014 Part of the blame for the high rates is that trial lawyer firms have aggressively gone after trucking companies, with television ads and billboards. Waguespack said that’s a case of lawyers using good business instincts. “They’re looking at the market and how to maximize profits,” he said. “And the laws make going after auto lawsuits very profitable.” To improve the climate, LABI has backed a measure to lower the threshold for a jury trial. Current state law requires a minimum claim civil claim of $50,000 for a jury trial. LABI notes this is 28 times higher than the national average – indeed, states such as Florida, Georgia, Tennessee and Texas have no threshold. Waguespack said this allows entrepreneurial trial lawyers to “judge shop” and seek favorable venues. “In other states with a lower threshold, there’s not an increase in jury trials and there are less frivolous suits,” he said. “That’s because juries are unpredictable.” This leads to the merits of a case driving the filing of a lawsuit. While critics have charged eliminating the threshold would dump more work on the state’s legal system, Waguespack said that isn’t the case. Louisiana is ranked number one in the South in terms of judges per capita and judges rank below the U.S. median for the number of cases per judge. “We’re very prepared for more citizen input,” Waguespack said. “We have a pretty intensive system to accommodate them.” The LABI judicial climate report noted the closed nature of the courts as another barrier to changing the legal system. Information on court operations is scarce, which stands in stark contrast to the requirements placed on other public bodies for transparency in budgeting and open meetings. These findings mirror reports by other citizen groups and taxpayer watchdogs, which have found that the judiciary continues to protect itself from outside scrutiny. During the past session of the Legislature, State Representative Ray Garofalo, R-Chalmette, introduced a bill that would have eliminated the jury trial threshold in Louisiana. Cathy Gautreaux, Executive Director of the Louisiana Motor Transport Association, testified that lowering the jury trial threshold was identified as one the most significant things that could be done to change the state’s judicial climate and encourage more companies to write motor carrier liability insurance. But the bill was tabled. Waguespack said LABI isn’t giving up after just one legislative session. The organization’s focus is to “continuously grind away” at the issue of the state’s judicial climate and the high jury trial threshold. “Our focus is on getting it done,” he said. “If it takes a multi-year effort to get there, we’re going to be pounding away at it to get it done.” In fact, LABI’s judicial climate report directly challenges the assertions made during the 2014 legislative session by opponents working against legal reforms supported by Louisiana industry. A series of myths regarding the Louisiana judicial system are debunked in the report, exposing the hard truths within the state’s legal system. Opponents argued that jury trials are too expensive, but state law requires the party requesting a jury trial to pay the costs up front. Opponents argued that Louisiana is a rural state and cannot handle any potential new civil jury trials, but many other Southern and rural states such as Mississippi and North Carolina have no dollar threshold for jury trials. Opponents even tried to argue that it is the criminal trials that overwhelm Louisiana’s courts, but fewer than five percent of criminal cases went to a jury last year. In a majority of Louisiana judicial districts, there were fewer than three jury trials per judge last year, criminal and civil combined. Lowering the threshold won’t be the silver bullet to improve the state’s legal climate and more work will need to be done. But Waguespack said that’s necessary to give the state a long-term future of systemic economic growth. “If you look at how Louisiana stands, we’re on the verge of a great run,” he said. “We have a lot of strong assets. The legal climate is the problem we have to overcome. Once we get that right, it will only benefit us.” To read more, visit www.labi.org and download the Judicial Climate report. K Finance your fleet with a trusted industry veteran Is it time to expand or replace units in your fleet? Wells Fargo Equipment Finance has a trucking industry veteran in Louisiana, who works with fleet owners to help drive their dollars further. We provide valuable guidance to help you get the equipment you need as simply and easily as possible. We offer: • Loans, leases, and lines of credit for private and for-hire carriers • A relationship approach designed to last for the long haul • Trailers available for lease directly from Wells Fargo Talk with a transportation equipment finance specialist today. Tony Cummings • 713-576-2361 • [email protected] © 2014 Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. All rights reserved. All transactions are subject to credit approval. Some restrictions may apply. Wells Fargo Equipment Finance is the trade name for certain equipment leasing and finance businesses of Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. and its subsidiaries. WCS-1198806 Help meet DOT’s alcohol and drug testing requirements Give your supervisors Let PSCS save you REQUIRED training trucks on the road! money and keep your and your drivers REQUIRED information Choose alternate formats for the delivery method that works best for you. J. J. 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