ATA Praises Congressional Action on Highway Bill

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American Trucking Associations Thursday praised the House-Senate conference committee that came to a consensus on a new highway bill, saying it “lays a solid foundation for addressing America’s need for an efficient goods movement network.”

The legislation “makes tremendous strides in the safety arena and puts down a marker for future improvements to our nation’s freight infrastructure,” ATA President Bill Graves said in a statement.

Graves, who urged Congress to quickly pass the legislation — which needs to be done by Saturday, when the current transportation funding extension expires — said ATA supports the bill’s requiring the Department of Transportation to establish regulations mandating electronic logging devices for motor carriers currently required to complete paper logs.

Regulations for electronic onboard recorders must be in place within one year and carriers will have two years to adopt and install EOBRs, ATA said.

Other provisions in the bill of interest to ATA and the trucking industry include:

• Creation of a clearinghouse to track drug and alcohol test results;

• A study of crashworthiness standards for large trucks;

• Establishment of standards for systems to provide employers with timely notifications of drivers’ moving violations; and

• Mandatory testing of new carriers entering the industry to verify their knowledge of safety requirements.

By Transport Topics

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