If you’re going to be out on the road next week, it would be a good idea to give your truck and trailer a good once-over – more than you would for a pre-trip. Next week is the annual 72-hour CVSA Roadcheck, and you know they’ll be looking closely.
The Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s 29th annual International Roadcheck will take place June 7-9, 2016. International Roadcheck is a 72-hour period when approximately 10,000 CVSA-certified local, state, provincial, territorial and federal inspectors in jurisdictions across North America perform large truck and bus safety inspections.
It’s the largest targeted enforcement program on commercial motor vehicles in the world, with nearly 17 trucks or buses inspected, on average, every minute in Canada, the United States and Mexico during a 72-hour period. During the annual three-day event, CVSA-certified inspectors conduct compliance, enforcement and educational initiatives targeted at various elements of motor carrier, vehicle and driver safety.
The special emphasis for 2016 is tire safety. Inspectors will be measuring the tire tread depth, checking the tire pressure, checking to make sure no items are lodged between dual tires, and examining the overall condition of the tire to ensure no deep cuts or bulges exist in the sidewalls of the tire.
During the safety blitz, inspectors primarily conduct the North American Standard Level I Inspection – a 37-step procedure that includes an examination of both the driver and vehicle.
Drivers are required to provide items such as their license, endorsements, medical card and hours-of-service documentation, and may be checked for seat belt usage and the use of alcohol and/or drugs.
The vehicle inspection includes checking items such as the braking system, securement of cargo, coupling devices, exhaust system, frame, fuel system, lights, steering mechanism, driveline/driveshaft, suspension, tires, van and open-top trailer bodies, wheels and rims, windshield wipers, and emergency exits on buses.
Part of the Level I inspection is a UCR check, so officers will be checking to see whether the trucking company has paid its annual Unified Carrier Registration fee. Motor carriers, private carriers, freight forwarders, brokers and leasing companies are required to submit an annual filing of information and pay a registration fee for each vehicle. If the UCR fee has not been paid for 2016, tickets can be issued, but the truck won’t be put out of service.
“The UCR violations are not part of our CVSA North American Standard Out-of-Service criteria,” CVSA Director of Vehicle Programs Will Schaefer told Land Line. “UCR violations are therefore not considered by CVSA to be an imminent hazard such as the vehicle is placed out of service.”
Schaefer said UCR compliance is enforced and levied by the state conducting the inspection, so penalties depend on the state. Some states like Georgia and Iowa just issue a warning, but others like North Carolina and Idaho have stiff fines up to $1,000. New York is (with formal proceedings) as much as $5,000. The UCR violations are issued to the carrier or the vehicle owner. Even though only 41 states participate in the UCR Agreement, all states may do a UCR check and issue a penalty.
In addition, if the inspecting officers find violations associated with any information on the DOT number that officers have access to, that would be checked during the Roadcheck, too, said Schaefer.
International Roadcheck is a CVSA program organized in partnership with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration; Canadian Council of Motor Transport Administrators; Transport Canada; and the Secretariat of Communications and Transportation (Mexico).
Since its inception in 1988, roadside inspections conducted during International Roadcheck have numbered more than 1.4 million. International Roadcheck also provides an opportunity to educate industry and the general public about the importance of safe commercial motor vehicle operations and the North American roadside inspection program.
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