Thread: WHAT'S ON THE ROAD AHEAD

WHAT'S ON THE ROAD AHEAD
By Vicki Crawford

APRIL 16, 2007 (Posted at: 8:36 p.m.)

It looks like our hired help in Washington DC isn't going to wait for that new fangled super highway to be built in order to put the thumbscrews to the American trucking industry. It appears that our current administration will soon be launching a pilot test program for the free operation of Mexican trucks on our side of the border.

Starting as early as the end of this month, the FMCSA (Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration) will start granting authorization to 100 Mexican trucking companies for US operation. I guess trucking has become another one of those jobs that Americans won't do, eh?

No doubt the advocates of the test program are singing praises of cheaper transportation costs and cheaper goods, but I've got to wonder how our own D.O.T. and law enforcement agencies are going to handle the Mexican trucks and their drivers on our highways and biways. Already there have been complaints that there aren't enough D.O.T. inspectors for American carriers.

Driving a truck or tractor-trailer unit commercially to haul goods and people isn't the same as someone climbing into a car and turning the key. There are a lot of rules and regulations to observe.

To get a commercial license, a D.O.T. physical is required along with passing a written test. Back in the late 1980s when I had gotten my Oklahoma commercial chauffeur's license (what is today's CDL), some licensing agencies also conducted a driving test as well.

Also there were several hours of mandatory safety classes that had to be taken. And hauling hazardous materials required going through another permitting/licensing process with more safety courses.

Will a foreign driver know that it's mandatory to come to a full stop at railroad crossings when carrying passengers or hazardous materials?

Licensed truck drivers in this country are also required to keep log books of their activities. There may have been changes since 1988, but to my knowledge D.O.T. permits only 10 hours of actual driving time per day, and 15 hours of on-duty time (includes driving hours) for the same.

Truckers are subject to inspections at any time, and are required to weigh in their vehicles at designated stations. One concern that I, as well as others have, is will the foreign truck drivers be subject to the same requirements and regulations in order to operate on our roads as do the American truckers?

And if so, who will see that they do? Moreover, what D.O.T. offical or law enforcement agent will risk losing his/her job just for stopping a suspicious truck with Mexican plates? Can you hear the lawyers screaming "racial profiling"?

Additionally, I don't see anything that guarantees that background checks will be conducted on these foreign drivers and their driving records. There is already several problems in this country will illegal aliens operating automobiles on our roadways without licenses, with phony or stolen licenses, without insurance, and in some states, without proper vehicle inspections.

Many (one source claims that most) of the Mexicans who will be hitting our roads in this program don't read, write, or speak English. Imagine the probable collision of a 13 foot high trailer when it hits an overpass with a sign stating, in English, that the clearance is 10 feet five inches.

Resolving accident situations will be another problem. How will accident victims reconcile damages to life, limb, and property with drivers from another country?

We already have problems here in Southwest Florida with out-of-state drivers who cause accidents and leave the victims paying the bills. One repercussion of that are higher automotive insurance rates here compared to other areas.

If this pilot test program continues for a substantial length of time, another problem we'll be facing is from changes in the shipping traffic. Whether it'll be dramatic or subtle, the points of entry for goods coming in overseas will shift to south of our border where there's fewer regulations, and costs will be cheaper.

No doubt it'll be a big plus for American companies looking to increase their profit margins, but it won't benefit American truckers and longshoremen. They'll be faced having to deal with less income for fewer jobs. For some this will be a career killer.

Sadly for the American people who want more security and control of our borders, this program will likely produce an increase in drug and human trafficking into this country. And it provides an easier avenue for any terrorist to come onto American soil.

Things could get ugly. Already there are truckers screaming boycott.

In some of the past trucking boycotts and strikes, some truckers have resorted to violence against other truckers. There have been beatings, arsons, suspicious accidents, and in some cases, outright murder, and we may see some of this again in the future.

With the violence connected to the drug trade and human smuggling from Mexico, it's possible that some foreign truck drivers will resort to the same useage of violence and weapons. How will that be handled?

For the advocates of free trade; don't bother trying to convince me. This is a one-sided deal which doesn't have significant benefits for the American public and some American workers.

And US truck drivers won't enjoy the same access into Mexico.

http://www.bonitanews.com/blogs/observa ... ruckentry/

On the other hand some American trucking companies have bought Mexican trucking companies that already own repair yards and warehouses. Compared with truck company regulations in Mexico the regulation of American interstate trucking is relatively strict.