Long Beach, truckers reach settlement

Long Beach, truckers reach settlement    The American Trucking Associations and Port of Long Beach said on Monday they reached a settlement over the port's clean truck programs, but the trucking group said 'litigation with the Port of Los Angeles will continue.'
   'The Clean Trucks Program is one of the biggest steps we've taken to improve air quality, and I'm happy to see that the port and the ATA have resolved these legal issues so that we can move forward together,' said Long Beach Mayor Bob Foster, in a statement.
   The ATA said its executive committee and the Port of Long Beach harbor commissioners have each approved a settlement that is based on a motor carrier registration process which will replace the port's concession agreement.
   The port and ATA said the new registration apparatus, which includes an agreement by carriers to provide the port necessary operating information, will allow the port to strictly oversee and enforce motor carrier's compliance with federal, state, and port safety, security, and environmental regulations.
   Motor carriers registering to operate at the port must agree to enter all truck and driver information into the port's drayage truck registry and equip each truck with a radio frequency identification tag or other technological device to allow the port to monitor and control truck entry into port facilities.
   Motor carriers will take responsibility for ensuring that all drivers dispatched to the port possess a valid commercial drivers' license and a Transportation Worker Identification Card.
   The registration further acknowledges the right of the port to deny entry to any truck or driver that fails to meet these regulatory requirements.
   'ATA has always strongly supported the environmental objectives of the Port and supports strict compliance with and adherence to all safety and security laws and regulations,' said Bill Graves, ATA president and chief executive officer. 'We never disagreed with (Long Beach's) objectives, only with certain provisions of the concession agreement which we believed were unnecessary for the accomplishment of those objectives.'
   Long Beach's Clean Trucks Program, which recently celebrated its first year anniversary, has led to the introduction of nearly 5,000 drayage low-emission trucks serving the Port Long Beach and the port says more than half of all the cargo moved in and out of the port is now carried by trucks that meet strict 2007 federal emission standards.
   After the initiative was launched, the ATA filed a lawsuit challenging the program's concession agreement, which established clean air, safety and maintenance requirements on trucking companies that operated at the port. A federal court judge enjoined some aspects of the concession agreement. The port said that under the concession agreement it could withhold permission, even if trucking companies meet the environmental, safety and security requirements, although Long Beach has never invoked those provisions.
   In June, the Federal Maritime Commission withdrew a separate lawsuit and an administrative proceeding against the clean trucks initiatives at the Port of Long Beach and Port of Los Angeles.
   The Clean Trucks Program progressively bans older trucks, replacing them with newer trucks. Pre-1989 trucks are no longer allowed at the port and beginning January 1, 2010, 1993 and older trucks will be banned. By 2012, only trucks meeting the 2007 federal emission standards will be allowed to operate at the port. ' Chris Dupin