The Nation

PORTLAND, Ore. — EROAD, a global technology provider of fleet management, electronic tax reporting and ELD compliance products for the transportation industry, said in a press release Monday that it had provided what it called “valuable and relevant” data to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration as the agency collects public comment regarding proposed changes to the Hours of Service regulations. “We receive ongoing feedback about HOS rules and their impacts on the road and on the bottom line from our customers,” said Norm Ellis, president of EROAD North America. “HOS flexibility is important, and EROAD is in an excellent position to combine what we see in our data along with fleet operators’ experiences to help FMCSA make the best decisions on improving HOS.” In August, the FMCSA announced it was seeking public input regarding four provisions of the industry’s Hours of Service regulations that are currently under review by the agency. Those include: Expanding the current 100 air-mile “short-haul” exemption from 12 hours on-duty to 14 hours on-duty, to be consistent with the rules for long-haul truck drivers. Extending the current 14-hour on-duty limitation by up to two hours when a truck driver encounters adverse driving conditions Revising the current mandatory 30-minute break for truck drivers after eight hours of continuous driving Reinstating the option for splitting up the required 10-hour off-duty rest break for drivers operating trucks that are equipped with a sleeper-berth compartment. To provide relevant input to the FMCSA and represent the viewpoints of its customer base, EROAD took the following steps: Performed analyses on millions of anonymized, aggregated data points from trips taken by US-based vehicles and drivers from January 1, 2018, through July 31, 2018, examining ELD data for patterns of FMCSA violations in relation to type, frequency per driver, and time in violation. Based on questions provided by the FMCSA for public comment on HOS flexibility, surveyed EROAD customers and other fleet operators to seek context regarding the HOS provisions under review. Hosted an open roundtable webinar during which the data from the statistical analysis and the survey were discussed and additional commentary was captured. Encouraged carriers to submit comments directly to FMCSA through the webpage provided. As for how ELD data can be used to support a more flexible split sleeper berth rule, most respondents pointed out that ELDs can support additional flexibility by capturing the events in the driver’s day more accurately and helping carriers to better manage schedules and fatigue. Some pointed out that while ELDs can capture time, they do not capture fatigue. “If the idea is ‘rested and alert’ drivers behind the wheel, the 14-hour clock needs to allow drivers to stop to let the driver determine his rest periods and when they are needed, not based on the pressure of the current rule,” one respondent wrote. EROAD ELD data analytics found: 30-minute rest break is the most common violation, followed by 14-hour duty limit, 11-hour driving limit, and on-duty limit. One respondent said this rule had created a “nightmare” in fuel lanes at truck stops as compliance had replaced common courtesy. Another respondent said drivers at his company should be able to use more frequent, shorter breaks that they currently encounter. Another said everyone wants a break, but how many trucks “do you see on the side of the road taking all 30 minutes? Many drivers want to stop when they want to.” The proportion of violations by type has remained fairly consistent since the mandate was introduced Average time spent in violation is reducing over time The number of violations per driver is increasing for 11-hour driving limit and 14-hour duty limit violations “We appreciate suppliers like EROAD that get involved with our industry by providing actionable information for the FMCSA,” said Dave Heller, vice president of government affairs for the Truckload Carriers Association. “Going beyond offering a solution to provide data and expertise is what makes having highly engaged industry suppliers so valuable.” The full report submitted to the FMCSA can be found at: https://go.eroad.com/hos_research. EROAD was founded in 2000 and headquartered in in New Zealand with North American offices in Portland, Oregon. For more information, visit www.EROAD.com.

JACKSON, Miss. — The Mississippi Department of Transportation is set to begin a project that the agency says will relieve peak drive time congestion on Interstate 55 in Madison County, which is immediately north of Jackson. “There is a bottleneck that develops during peak drive times on I-55 northbound entering Madison County,” said DOT Commissioner Dick Hall of the Central Transportation District and chairman of the Mississippi Transportation Commission. “This project will widen the interstate and relieve the current bottleneck, which will decrease congestion and drive times and improve safety for the traveling public.” The approximately $12.3 million project was awarded to Key LLC of Madison and will widen, mill and overlay I-55 northbound from County Line Road to the Natchez Trace Parkway. The project will also widen the I-55 northbound bridge under the bridge to I-220 southbound. The project will also address drainage issues on the West Frontage Road between Old Agency Road and Steed Road by removing and replacing existing curb and gutter. Lane closures will be necessary to perform this work. Additionally, the west end of Old Agency Road through the roundabout at Renaissance shopping center to the end of state maintenance. “The work taking place around Renaissance will begin next week and is scheduled to be complete before Thanksgiving and the holiday shopping season begins,” Hall said. The work on I-55 is not scheduled to begin until after the work on the West Frontage Road is complete. However, the traveling public will begin seeing construction signs placed along I-55 in preparation for work to begin. Once work begins on I-55, lane closures will be necessary. Most lane closures will occur at night to reduce the impact to traffic. “This project will significantly reduce congestion and increase safety on a heavily traveled section of I-55 in the Jackson-Metro area,” Hall said. “We ask for the traveling public’s patience as this project progresses and urge motorists to exercise extreme caution by slowing down and avoiding distractions in construction zones.” The DOT expects the entire project to be complete by fall 2020. Work zones present new traffic patterns and configurations that may be unfamiliar to motorists. For information about how to navigate highway work zones safely, visit www.GoMDOT.com/drivesmartms. For more information about these or other MDOT maintenance and construction projects, visit www.MDOTtraffic.com, call Mississippi 511, download the free MDOT Traffic app or like and follow @MississippiDOT on Facebook and Twitter.

On-highway diesel prices rose for the week ending Oct. 1, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). The average price nationwide climbed by $0.042 to $3.313, the highest it’s been since December 2014. This week’s gain was the largest single-week gain since early May. Prices rose in every region across the country, although unevenly. In California, the price for a gallon of diesel rose $0.052, putting it over the $4 per gallon mark, at $4.038. The West Coast overall saw an increase of $0.043, to $3.802. California, however, did not experience the largest jump in prices for the week. That occurred in the Midwest, where diesel rose an even 6 cents, to $3.278, still one of the regions where diesel prices are lowest. The lowest diesel in the nation remains in the Gulf Region, where it finished the week at $3.079, up by $0.027 from a week ago. The smallest increase was in the Rocky Mountain region, where prices rose $0.012 to finish at $3.367. Nationwide, the price of diesel is currently $0.521 higher than it was a year ago. California has experienced the largest year-to-year gain, at $0.856, while the Lower Atlantic has seen the smallest year-to-year gain, $0.432 per gallon. Oil futures rose Oct. 1, with the U.S. benchmark up by $1.66 to close at $74.91 a barrel, while Brent crude climbed by $1.57, or 1.9 percent, to $84.30. Click here for a complete list of average prices by region for the past three weeks.  

ITASCA, Ill. — A National Safety Council survey report released Monday found 69 percent of employees – many of whom work in in safety-critical industries – are tired at work, increasing the risk of injuries and incidents on the job. That includes 97 percent of employers in the transportation industry who feel the impact of fatigue, the highest among all safety-critical industries listed in the report. The report, “Fatigue in Safety-Critical Industries: Impact, Risks and Recommendations,” summarizes the results of two national surveys, one of employers and a second probability-based survey of employees. The report highlights findings from the construction, manufacturing, transportation and utilities sectors– all high-risk industries that tend to use shift work, which commonly leads to fatigue. The surveys also exposed a gap between how employees and employers view the risks and consequences of being tired at work. Ninety percent of employers feel the impact of fatigue on their organizations, including observing safety incidents involving tired employees and declines in productivity. However, just 72 percent of workers view being tired as a safety issue. “We’ve been looking at the impact of fatigue in the workplace for a long time, but it is troubling to see just how affected our safety-sensitive industries are,” said Emily Whitcomb, senior program manager of fatigue initiatives at the National Safety Council. “When you’re tired, you can be deadly and these industries are already at higher risk because of their safety sensitive jobs. We urge employers to address fatigue risk in their workplace so all employees can be healthy and safe.” Fatigue is a hidden but common hazard in all workplaces, regardless of industry, the report noted. In safety-critical positions, however, the consequences of being tired can be catastrophic. For example, mistakes on construction sites, around gas line digging areas or behind the wheel of big-rig trucks easily can lead to injuries or even death. Other significant findings from the Fatigue in Safety-Critical Industries report include: Nearly all – 95 percent – of employers in utilities said it is unsafe to drive while tired, but just 66 percent of employees in that industry agreed 100 percent of construction workers report having at least one risk factor for fatigue 46 percent of construction workers say they work during high-risk hours, such as at night or early morning Transportation industry employees who reported at least one risk factor for fatigue cited long shifts (42 percent) and sleep loss (48 percent) Lack of sleep costs $410 billion annually in societal expenses, and fatigue has a different price tag for each employer, the report said. The National Safety Council developed the Fatigue Cost Calculator to help employers determine how much a drowsy workforce is impacting their bottom lines and what can be done to solve the problem. The Council also developed the Fatigue Toolkit for employers interested in educating their workforce about causes and consequences of fatigue in the workplace and on the roads. Fatigue in Safety-Critical Industries is the third in a three-part series exploring the prevalence of fatigue risk factors and safety-critical incidents caused by fatigue in our workplaces. More information about the issue and copies of each report are available at www.nsc.org/fatiguesurvey.        

ATLANTA — Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal said he state is planning to invest in a second inland container port facility and build “truck-only” lanes on Interstate 16 out of the port of Savannah in a bid to relieve traffic congestion and improve highway safety. Deal reveal his intentions during a speech at the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) annual meeting in here late last month, according to a report in the AASHTO Journal. “We have a good port in Savannah – the second busiest port along the entire Atlantic seaboard,” Deal said.  “That’s good but also bad because it creates traffic problems. I don’t mean to step on toes in the trucking business, but those trucks [hauling freight containers to and from the port] are always a concern to the driving public in smaller vehicles. So as the port grows, the number of trucks and containers grow as well.” To help relieve that congestion on Interstate 75 caused by freight-hauling trucks, Deal said he helped cement a deal three years ago involving the Georgia Ports Authority, Murray County and CSX Transportation that led to the construction of an inland port in the northwest corner of Georgia called the Appalachian Regional Port, which services North Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee and parts of Kentucky. Gov. Deal said that inland port – opened earlier this year and one of two in Georgia – “takes 50,000 containers a day off our roadways and will take double that number off our roads in 10 years. Soon, we will announce [construction of] a similar port in northeast Georgia off the I-85 corridor. We are excited about that; it will allow truckers to go to inland terminal and load containers on rail cars that will be transported to our port in Savannah. I think that is the wave of the future.” Deal added that Georgia is also planning to build a dedicated truck lane on I-16 out of port of Savanah heading north. “I think that may be the only dedicated truck lane in the country and we’ll be pleased when that comes into the being,” Deal said. He noted that such highway construction is made possible by a $1 billion transportation-focused tax increase Georgia’s legislature passed in 2015. “When you are growing rapidly, that puts great pressure on your infrastructure – we were mindful of that,” he said. “So in 2015 we convinced our legislature to revisit the way we pay for infrastructure improvements – because our funding mechanism had not been revisited in about 40 years,” Deal said. “Under our old formula, if you had the road paved in front of your house while you were in high school, you’d be eligible for social security before it was repaved again. “So our consistent and unified effort to educate our legislature helped get a new transportation bill passed in 2015; giving us $1 billion in additional revenue for infrastructure renewal in Georgia. As a result, we’re in the process of getting 11 major projects started for the next decade.” PHOTO CAPTION Courtesy: GEORGIA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal said the fact that the state’s Savannah port is the second busiest on the Eastern seaboard is a double-edged sword because the good business creates traffic problems.

ATLANTA  — An overturned livestock truck spilled a herd of cows onto a highway cloverleaf north of Atlanta on Monday, causing traffic chaos including wrecks that killed several cows and injured a driver. Sgt. Joe Worsham of the Sandy Springs Police Department said the wreck happened about 3 a.m. Monday on the Cobb Cloverleaf connecting Interstates 75 and 285. The tractor-trailer carried about 90 cows and about half of them were still roaming in the Cobb County and Sandy Springs area late Monday morning, Worsham said. “We’re wrangling some cows, that’s what we’re doing,” Worsham said. Some roads in the area were closed for a time but had reopened late Monday morning, he said. Sandy Springs police worked four wrecks caused by the wandering cows, Worsham said. No one was injured in any of those accidents, although several cows were hurt and some had to be tranquilized as officers tried to corral them. Cobb County Sgt. Wayne Delk was quoted by the Atlanta Journal Constitution as saying that investigators do not believe speed was a factor in the crash. The driver of the tractor-trailer that was carrying the cattle was taken to a hospital with injuries. Cobb County animal control brought a horse trailer to the area and police were putting some of the animals in the trailer, he said. Most of the missing cows were no longer on the roads. “We don’t know where they are,” Worsham said. “We’re waiting for people to call and tell us there’s a cow in the backyard.” A spokesman for the Cobb County Sheriff’s Department did not immediately respond to messages Monday morning about the search for cows on their side of the Chattahoochee River. It’s the third such accident this year outside Atlanta, and the biggest yet. Smaller herds spilled onto Interstate 75 in May and Interstate 285 in June. PHOTO CAPTION This screen capture from video on Atlanta television state WSBTV shows a law enforcement officer trying to round up one of the cows that escaped a cattle truck after it wrecked early Monday morning.

PLOVER, Wis. — Women In Trucking Association (WIT) has named Lana Poveda its October Member of the Month. Poveda is a CRST Expedited Team Driver with 15 years of service. Everyone in the transportation industry can find inspiration in Lana Poveda’s one-million-miles of accident-free driving, said WIT President and CEO Ellen Voie, who added what’s perhaps even more inspiring is Poveda’s fun-loving, gentle and uplifting spirit — and her ability to always look on the bright side of life, even when facing one of life’s greatest challenges. Lana was diagnosed with breast cancer last month. “I had some unexpected home-time, so I squeezed in an appointment,” Poveda said. “I’m glad I did, as my type of breast cancer is hard to detect; and it was detected early. I’m optimistic, but I am also leaning a little harder on my partner in love and life these days.” In Poveda’s case, her partner in and outside the cab is her husband, Claude. “After many years together, we’re still very much in love! It’s nice being together on the road because we work better together as a team,” she said. Now at their home in Palm Spring, California, the two are continuing to work together through her treatment plan before returning to their favorite part of their careers as drivers — traveling to see the country. Poveda recalls driving through Oregon on I-84 where there was a sight of elk grazing through a valley as far as she and her husband could see. “It was the greatest, most beautiful and majestic thing I have ever seen,” she said. “Driving is a ‘lifestyle’ job, but I love driving for CRST because I get to see the whole country and I never see the same things twice. And, Lisa, our DM, is a big sweetheart—she makes working for CRST awesome.” According to Poveda, CRST provides great support to women working in a male-dominated industry. “When I started, there weren’t a lot of women, but now there are so many,” she said. “And, that’s really inspiring to me, especially in my current situation. It’s great to have other women out there to talk with, share tips and offer support and encouragement.” Through her positive interactions with women out on the road, Poveda’s helping to change the landscape for women in the industry. “At the end of the day, you don’t have to fit into a certain persona or gender to be a driver. It’s about loving to drive and being an inspiration for all that want to enter this industry,” she said. Poveda’s words of wisdom for other women is if you really want to do something in your life, you should try. “Go for it, ladies,” she said. October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. As such, Voie urged women to consider encouraging family, friends and co-workers to get their annual mammogram and educate themselves on the risks, signs, symptoms of breast cancer. Women In Trucking Association is a nonprofit association established to encourage the employment of women in the trucking industry, promote their accomplishments and minimize obstacles faced by women working in the trucking industry. Membership is not limited to women, as 17 percent of its members are men who support the mission. For more information, visit http://www.womenintrucking.org or call 888-464-9482.

TORONTO — Canada was back in a revamped North American free trade deal with the United States and Mexico late Sunday after weeks of bitter, high-pressure negotiations that brushed up against a midnight deadline. In a joint statement, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland said the agreement “will strengthen the middle class, and create good, well-paying jobs and new opportunities for the nearly half billion people who call North America home.” The new deal, reached just before a midnight deadline imposed by the U.S., will be called the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA. It replaces the 24-year-old North American Free Trade Agreement, which President Donald Trump had called a job-killing disaster. Trump on Monday morning called it a “great deal,” tweeting that it “solves the many deficiencies and mistakes in NAFTA, greatly opens markets to our Farmers and Manufacturers, reduces Trade Barriers to the U.S. and will bring all three Great Nations together in competition with the rest of the world.” He added: “Congratulations to Mexico and Canada!” The agreement reached Sunday gives U.S. farmers greater access to the Canadian dairy market. But it keeps a NAFTA dispute-resolution process that the U.S. wanted to jettison and offers Canada protection if Trump goes ahead with plans to impose tariffs on cars, trucks and auto parts imported into the United States. “It’s a good day for Canada,” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said as he left his office. Trudeau said he would have more to say Monday. “We celebrate a trilateral deal. The door closes on trade fragmentation in the region,” Jesus Seade, trade negotiator for Mexico’s incoming president, said via Twitter. Representatives for the government of Mexican president-elect Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador have called a press conference to discuss details of the trade deal on Monday. Canada, the United States’ No. 2 trading partner, was left out when the U.S. and Mexico reached an agreement last month to revamp the North American Free Trade Agreement. The Trump administration officially notified Congress of the U.S.-Mexico trade agreement on Aug. 31. That started a 90-day clock that would let outgoing Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto sign the new pact before he leaves office Dec. 1. Trump threatened to go ahead with a revamped NAFTA — with or without Canada. It was unclear, however, whether Trump had authority from Congress to pursue a revamped NAFTA with only Mexico. Some lawmakers immediately expressed relief that Canada had been reinstated in the regional trading bloc. “I am pleased that the Trump administration was able to strike a deal to modernize NAFTA with both Mexico and Canada,” said Senate Finance Chairman Orrin Hatch, R-Utah. “NAFTA is a proven success.” NAFTA tore down most trade barriers between the United States, Canada and Mexico, leading to a surge in trade between the three countries. But Trump and other critics said it encouraged manufacturers to move south of the border to take advantage of low-wage Mexican wages, costing American jobs. Trump campaigned on a promise to rewrite NAFTA — or get rid of it. Talks on a rewrite began more than a year ago. To placate Trump, Mexico agreed in August to provisions that would require 40 percent to 45 percent of a car be built in countries where auto workers earn at least $16 an hour to qualify for NAFTA’s duty-free benefits. It was surprising that the United States found it easier to cut a deal with Mexico than with Canada, a longtime ally with a high-wage economy similar to America’s. “When this got started, Canada was the teacher’s pet and Mexico was the problem child,” said Michael Camunez, president of Monarch Global Strategies and former U.S. Commerce Department official. But relations between Ottawa and Washington soured. In the aftermath of a disastrous G-7 summit in Quebec in June, Trump called Trudeau “weak” and “dishonest.” The two countries need each other economically. Canada is by far the No. 1 destination for U.S. exports, and the U.S. market accounts for 75 percent of what Canada sells abroad. PHOTO CAPTION Prime Minister Justin Trudeau leaves the Office of the Prime Minister and Privy Council after an agreement was reached in the NAFTA negotiations in Ottawa, Ontario, Sunday, Sept. 30, 2018. The U.S. and Canada reached the basis of a free trade deal Sunday night, a senior Canadian government official said. (Justin Tang/The Canadian Press via AP)

LANSING, Mich. — More than 150 stalled road projects across Michigan are set to resume after road builders agreed to end their lockout of a union of heavy equipment operators, Gov. Rick Snyder announced Thursday. The agreement brings to an end, at least temporarily, a labor impasse that had disrupted work for more than three weeks, including on big projects along Interstates 75 and 696 in the Detroit area. The Michigan Infrastructure & Transportation Association will stop the lockout of between 1,000 and 2,000 members of the Operating Engineers 324 union, who will work without a contract until the winter. The parties, who met with Snyder on Tuesday but left the meeting without a resolution, will use professional mediation to help with negotiations for a new contract, the governor said. “This is great news, and I appreciate that both sides were able to see how important the work they do is to the safety and quality of life for all Michiganders,” Snyder said in a statement. “The vital work of getting Michigan’s roads repaired should not have stalled, but the important thing now is that projects will be getting back on track.” About 50 contractors exercised what they called a “defensive lockout” on Sept. 4, more than three months after the expiration of the last union contract. The union called it an “involuntary layoff.” Snyder said a priority will be placed on projects that can be finished prior to winter weather arriving, while other projects will continue for as long as possible and be prepared for safe travel if they cannot be completed. The state had warned the contractors that they could have to pay liquidated damages if their work extends beyond contractually required completion dates. Snyder had floated the possibility of activating the Michigan National Guard to help with “critical” projects. Mike Nystrom, executive vice president/secretary of MITA, said this week that the contractors had started temporarily hiring an unspecified number of nonunion replacement workers — many from out of state. “I understand the frustration this has caused, but our association has an important responsibility to our members who are committed to doing the best work they can to build and maintain Michigan’s infrastructure on behalf of taxpayers,” he said in a statement. Ken Dombrow, president of Operating Engineers 324, said in a statement that “our members are ready to get back on their machines and get these projects done across the state, and look forward to working again as soon as we can.”

Scrap the 30-minute rest break, go back to the pre 2005 sleeper-berth split of 10 hours as long as each rest period is at least two hours; and give added flexibility to the 14-hour clock by stopping it to account for “unforeseen” delays or simply to sit and “have a healthy meal,” the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) said in its comments on Hours of Service flexibility. The comments were in response to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on creating more flexibility within the HOS. Regarding the split sleeper berth, OOIDA commented that this would be “a colossal benefit” to drivers. In opting for a split sleeper berth, OOIDA quoted FMCSA’s own 2012 study which found that study participants who accumulated 7 total hours of sleep over a 24-hour period performed just as well as those who had 7 hours of sleep at a time. Being able to stop the 14-hour clock should be able to be applied not only in response to weather and road conditions but also to detention time, the group said, adding that changing the wording to “unforeseen” rather than “adverse” conditions, would cover all the bases as far as under what conditions the clock could be stopped. Drivers should be able to pause the 14-hour clock for up to three hours, they added. OOIDA also called on FMCSA to “take further action that would decrease detention times across the trucking industry,” noting an OOIDA Foundation survey which found drivers spend from 11 to 20 hours weekly waiting to be loaded and unloaded, while 22 percent collect no detention pay. According to a 2017 U.S. Department of Transportation study, OOIDA commented, lack of detention pay costs drivers annually more than $1 billion, or cuts annual pay by 3 to 3.6 percent. FMCSA Administrator Ray Martinez has said fixing the detention problem is not within the agency’s purview.  

LANSING, Mich.  — Gov. Rick Snyder expressed frustration Tuesday after failing to end what he called an unprecedented labor impasse between road contractors and a union of heavy equipment operators that is disrupting more than 150 construction projects statewide, including major work on Interstates 75 and 696 in the Detroit area. “Our public is not going to be happy about this. I’m not happy. This is not a good situation,” Snyder said after holding his first in-person meeting with the parties. His aides had met separately with the Michigan Infrastructure & Transportation Association and the Operating Engineers 324 union last week, when the Republican governor was on a trade trip in China. The contractors exercised what they call a “defensive lockout” of between 1,000 and 2,000 unionized workers three weeks ago, more than three months after the expiration of their contract. The union calls it an “involuntary layoff.” Snyder, who is worried that the dispute will keep projects from being completed by the winter, said he likely will next warn both sides of unspecified consequences due to their “failure to make progress.” It is unclear what steps he may take, though one option under consideration is activating the Michigan National Guard. While the state Department of Transportation has contracts with the road builders, which include penalties for not completing projects on time, the agency is thought to have limited legal authority to affect negotiations because the dispute in between the contractors and their employees. “We’re still looking at all the legal options,” said Snyder, who has asked state Attorney General Bill Schuette for guidance. “It’s not as simple as simply declaring a state of emergency and having them go back to work. Much of this is under federal labor law.” The guard, he said, potentially could be used for “critical” projects — not for typical construction but rather to “help button up or get some in a better spot than they are today.” MDOT spokesman Jeff Cranson said traffic for the most part is moving smoothly through construction zones where work has been halted, but traffic is “heavily, heavily affected” at the I-75 Rouge River project near Detroit and the I-696 site in Macomb County, where lanes are closed.

GRAIN VALLEY, Mo. — The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association will host its 45th anniversary at the Guilty by Association Truck Show (GBATS) in Joplin, Missouri, Thursday through Saturday. OOIDA and 4 State Trucks partnering to present the 10th annual GBATS which will include a listening session co-hosted with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. OOIDA leadership will host two open house meetings, Friday 10 a.m. to noon and Saturday 1 p.m.-3 p.m. Truck show attendees can also participate in scheduled entertainment and activities. Other events include a professional bull riding competition, a truck and tractor pull, a motorcycle stunt rider show, big rig drag races, a truck convoy for the Special Olympics of Southwest Missouri, and a downtown concert featuring Confederate Railroad. The FMCSA public listening session regarding the agency’s Hours of Service regulations is scheduled for Friday from 3:30 p.m.-5 p.m. in 4 State Trucks’ shop area behind the main store. During the scheduled listening session the FMCSA hopes to gather feedback which will be used to determine if HOS revisions may alleviate unnecessary burdens placed on drivers while improving safety on our nation’s highways and roads. After introductory remarks from FMCSA, participants will be invited to share their views on current regulations and other topics related to commercial truck drivers in an open forum. FMCSA has setup a registration page for the event at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/fmcsa-public-listening-session-tickets-50282212451 OOIDA said in a news release that the associaton’s members have often pointed out to their representatives in Washington that current regulations are overly complex, provide no flexibility and in no way reflect the physical capabilities or limitations of individual drivers. OOIDA members have told lawmakers their concerns about regulations that force them to be on the road when they are tired, during busy travel times and in adverse weather or road conditions. Their schedules are also at the mercy of shippers and receivers, and other obstacles that create a conflict between operating both safely and in compliance with HOS regulations. OOIDA petitioned the FMCSA earlier this year and expressed support for proposed legislation that came soon after, both of which would reform current regulations that dictate rest breaks for truck drivers. OOIDA’s petition recommended that drivers be allowed to take rest breaks once per 14-hour period for up to three consecutive hours as long as the driver is off-duty. It also suggested eliminating the 30-minute break requirement. On the legislative side, the Responsible and Effective Standards for Truckers, or REST Act, H.R.5417, is similar in that it would allow drivers to take one rest break per shift, for up to three consecutive hours. This single off-duty period would not be counted toward the driver’s 14-hour, on-duty allowance. The bill would not extend the total, allowable drive time limits. The bill was introduced by Rep. Brian Babin, R-Texas, and would also eliminate the existing 30-minute rest break requirement. The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association is the largest national trade association representing the interests of small-business trucking professionals and professional truck drivers. The association, which was established in 1973, currently has more than 160,000 members nationwide.