Fleet Maintenance editor David A. Kolman shares his insights on the fleet maintenance and trucking industry.
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Nationwide top 10 driver and vehicle violations
By David A. Kolman - Monday June 3, 2013In a recent industry presentation, Stephen Keppler, executive director of the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA), noted the top nationwide driver and vehicle safety violations as revealed by data from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration ( www.fmcsa.dot.gov ). The driver violations were: 1. Log form and manner. 2. Driver's record of duty status not current. 3. Driver not in possession of medical certificate. 4. Non-English speaking driver. (What a world that this is in the top five.) 5. Speeding (6 to 10 mpg over posted speed limit). 6. Failing to use a seat belt. 7. Over the 14-hour on-duty limit. 8. Failing to obey traffic control device. 9. False record of duty status. 10. Expired medical... -
Is your equipment ready for CVSA's annual enforcement blitz?
By David A. Kolman - Monday May 20, 2013
Roadcheck is the largest targeted enforcement program on commercial vehicles in the world, with approximately 14 trucks or buses being inspected, on average, every minute from Canada to Mexico, during a 72-hour period in early June. An annual event, this year's Roadcheck, themed is set for June 4 to 6. That is when the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA) and its members will be aggressively enforcing compliance with commercial vehicle safety regulations, removing those high-risk carriers from the roads to ensure the public's safety. The theme for Roadcheck 2103 is Enhancing Truck and Bus Safety Throughout North America , and there will be an additional focus on motorcoach inspections and overall traffic enforcement. The CVSA is... -
Are your vehicles prime targets for theft?
By David A. Kolman - Monday May 13, 2013
The National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) recently released the latest annual Hot Wheels - its list of the 10 most-stolen vehicles in the U.S. The report examines vehicle theft data submitted by law enforcement to the National Crime Information Center and determines the vehicle make, model and year most reported stolen. For 2011, the most-stolen vehicles in the nation were: 1. 1994 Honda Accord. 2. 1998 Honda Civic. 3. 2006 Ford Pickup (full size). 4. 1991 Toyota Camry. 5. 2000 Dodge Caravan. 6. 1994 Acura Integra. 7. 1999 Chevrolet Pickup (full size). 8. 2004 Dodge Pickup (full size). 9. 2002 Ford Explorer. 10. 1994 Nissan Sentra. Hot Wheels is the only report that examines all theft data without regard... -
Put your thumbs down and drive
By David A. Kolman - Monday May 6, 2013
I have a number of friends and business associates that believe they’re being more careful when they use the voice-to-text method rather than manual texting while driving. That may seem safer, but new research findings suggest that voice-to-text applications offer no real safety advantage. The study was sponsored by the Southwest Region University Transportation Center (SWUTC) and conducted by the Texas A&M Transportation Institute (TTI). SWUTC is a part of the University Transportation Centers Program, which is a federally-funded program administered by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Research and Innovative Technology Administration . Actual driving The first of its kind study was based on the... -
Business change initiatives
By David A. Kolman - Monday April 29, 2013
As part of my job, I do a lot of flying. While waiting at airports and on aircraft, I read books - the hard or soft cover kind. On a recent flight, I read the book, Selfish Altruism: Managing & Executing Successful Change Initiatives . Written by change management consultant Moe Glenner, it examines the often-ignored human element in business change initiatives and offers advice on using personal motivation to produce lasting results. “If we define altruism as ‘for the greater good’ and selfish as ‘me first,’ then even a selfish act can be altruistic,” Glenner says. “Even though an employee could be facilitating a change for a higher salary (selfish), it will benefit the organization (altruistic). “Intent is...
