ATA Proposes ‘Truck Army’
ATA officials said they had already begun to train some drivers to aid in the anti-terrorist effort but could train the entire workforce if the federal government agrees to provide financial support for the program.
ATA’s plan to create America’s Trucking Army was unveiled last week at a safety forum here sponsored by its Safety & Loss Prevention Management Council.
Jeffrey Beatty, ATA’s international terrorism and security adviser, told trucking industry executives at the forum that drivers must become familiar with the tactics of terrorists if they are to help prevent trucks from being used as weapons of mass destruction.
Highway Watch already has drivers reporting emergency and safety situations, but the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on New York and Washington highlighted a new type of security threat in which vehicles and cargoes could be used as weapons.
Full implementation of the training program for 3 million drivers will require government funding, an ATA spokesman said. However, current Highway Watch funding is making interim training possible.
Two dozen drivers were trained in April in Arkansas through the Arkansas Trucking Association. Another group was scheduled for training by the Maryland Trucking Association on May 18 in Baltimore.
Government funding also would be required to build and operate a proposed National Highway Watch Operation Center and construct a secure Web site to assist the program’s operation, the spokesman said.
The spokesman also emphasized that the ATA plan calls for cooperation among all 50 state trucking associations and federal, state and law enforcement agencies.
Gov. Tom Ridge, director of Homeland Security, at a May 14 White House news conference praised ATA for its commitment to working with the administration to combat terrorism.
“We’ve had some good conversations with the trucking association. . . . Well, these are men and women who are on the road 24/7 — are out there a lot,” he said. Ridge added that the administration intends to work with ATA over its plan to “refine that over the months and years ahead.”
Beatty said drivers essentially will be trained how to identify potential targets and to recognize signs a terrorist attack may be planned.
Because terrorists typically plan an attack over long periods, Beatty said, they often scout a specific target and rehearse the attack.
“Terrorism is not just a target of opportunity,” Beatty said. Personnel trained to spot security irregularities often can help form an “attack profile,” he said.
He also warned the trucking audience that a truck bomb could have a significant effect on their industry.
An exploding truck could cause severe routing delays — perhaps around entire cities — and the economic damage could easily put a trucking company out of business, he said.
Beatty presented an economic analysis that said a single truck bomb could easily cost a company more than $5 million, based on hypothetical direct damages and insurance costs.
“We cannot afford to let this industry be on its butt,” he said. “We have only ourselves to blame if we don’t take advantage of information that is out there.”
The first phase of ATA’s anti-terrorism plan includes a color-coded security threat alert system that helps trucking companies map their needs for shoring up security.
The codes match the system used by the U.S. Office of Homeland Security and outline specific measures truckers should take as threat levels change based on events in the nation and world.
Alert levels range from green, which indicates a low risk of terrorist attack, to red for a severe risk.
Beatty said the trucking industry was currently at yellow, signifying an elevated threat in the middle of the range.
At that level, the plan says companies should increase surveillance at critical locations as well as coordinate emergency plans with nearby jurisdictions.
They should also assess how to further refine protective measures and implement any necessary emergency response plans.
The next stage up would be an orange, or high alert, status.
Under that code, trucking companies would be advised to coordinate security efforts with armed forces or law enforcement agencies, take extra precautions at public events and prepare to work at an alternative site or with a dispersed work force.
They would also be advised to restrict access to essential personnel.
n a severe alert, trucking officials would pre-position specially trained emergency teams, constrain transportation systems and close public facilities.
Updated threat information from federal authorities will be broadcast to drivers or posted on a Web site depending on the information’s time sensitivity.
Initially, drivers will report perceived security threats to an industry-sponsored 800 telephone number.
The information will be screened and sent to federal and state authorities.
Highway Watch Operations Center, which will serve as an information sharing and analysis center, is planned for the next phase of the security action.
“This is the way of the future,” said Beatty. “The cumulative effects of what you do adds up. They act as a deterrent.”
The plan is a coordinated effort of the Trucking Security Working Group, a task force comprised of organizations representing thousands of trucking and truck-related workers in the United States and Canada.
This story appears in the May 20 print edition of Transport Topics. Subscribe today.
