WASHINGTON — Truck safety advocates want the Biden administration to investigate whether regulators violated ethics rules and federal law in conducting cost-benefit assessments of crash protection equipment for truck trailers.
In a letter sent Thursday to U.S. Department of Transportation Inspector General Eric Soskin requesting the investigation, the Truck Safety Coalition, along with a group of truck crash victim advocates and victim family members, alleged potential misconduct by DOT officials in coordinating with the American Trucking Associations “to suppress taxpayer-financed research on improving public safety in underride crashes with large commercial freight trucks.”
The groups cited recent investigative reporting conducted by ProPublica and PBS Frontline. They noted in their letter that in 2019 and 2020, the two news organizations revealed that DOT officials, at the direction of ATA, “censored any mention of the word ‘regulation’ and struck whole sections of a draft government report that assessed technology designed to protect pedestrians, bicyclists, and other vulnerable road users from death and horrific injuries in collisions with commercial freight trucks.”
According to ProPublica, by the time of its release in 2020, the report, published by DOT’s Volpe Center, “had been dramatically rewritten, stripped of its key conclusions — including the need to federally mandate side guards — and cut down by nearly 70 pages.”
The findings raise serious concerns, the truck safety groups warned. “If true, they could constitute misconduct, conflict of interest, unethical conduct, and potentially public corruption,” their letter to Soskin stated.
To continue reading this article...
Already have an account? Sign In
Create a Free Account
No payment required
Christopher Montgomery
Underside guards are currently $1500.00 each side. $3000.00
Blocking sight on other side of trailer in traffic to notice other cars or trucks.
7 seconds of direct wind can flip over any truck.
Most Trucking company’s have no mandatory federal fuel surcharge on most brokered loads.
Most brokered loads are flat rate, and brokers are setting “Lane rates”
If your wanted fuel economy, federal government need to set a standard rate per mile
Adding in surcharge. Forcing brokers to pay a standard minimum, that is a step in the right direction.
1980, the government pass the transportation act, deregulating the trucking industry. Deregulation means to leave alone, but they have been pasting laws, without compensation the industry as a whole.
No slavery in transportation industry, is just a plantation.
Politics, and other interest have profited off trucking industry.
Political action committee is needed.
Truckers need serious protection an advocates on all matters.
Mandatory transportation rate is needed like $3 a mile and surcharge.
Equally in fair market pricing, because brokers is just another mouth to feed in the chain of logistics.
18wheeler $150,000 these days
Trailers are 100,000 also. Van reefer or flat.
How is the business suppose to succeed with $1.57 being told its supply and demand.
All the while, groceries, tires, rent and insurance are going up.
Ronald arneil
Maybe tge money should be spent for driving education. Noy trucking companies have to have cameras in trucks to protect their businesses due to accidents caused by non commercial trucks. I am not saying truck drivers are perfect in any way but I’ve been driving a class 8 truck for almost 30 years. In no way I am saying I’m prefect. But I’ve seen all this change and nobody is coming to therescue for the trucking industry its just dump more regulation on this regulation burdened industry. Small trucking companies do not have the profit margin to update equipment, nevermind do all of this other stuff. Have a nice day everyone and be safe out on the road
CARLOS ♥️🇺🇸
♥️ underride guards need to become mandatory and required fitting on ALL existing trailers within a reasonable time frame… Countless lives will be saved by this sensible legislation ..not to mention the side benefit of improved aerodynamics and boosted fuel efficiency ♥️