Are You Ready for the 2018 CVSA International Roadcheck?

With Memorial Day weekend, the official summer kick-off behind us, another important summer event is fast approaching — the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA) annual International Roadcheck, a three-day event of continuous commercial vehicle inspections across North America. Scheduled for June 5-7, 2018, the international roadcheck covers the U.S., Mexico and Canada. Since its inception in 1988, more than 1.5 million roadside inspections have been conducted during International Roadcheck campaigns.

CVSA-certified commercial motor vehicle inspectors will check 15 trucks or buses nearly every minute – and the industry will be watching to see if violations continue to decrease, as they have in past years.  

For 2018, in the wake of the electronic logging device (ELD) regulation, the focus for this year is Hours of Service (HOS) compliance. 

2017 International Roadcheck results

During the 2017 International Roadcheck, more than 62,000 driver and safety inspections on commercial vehicles, large trucks and buses were conducted. What was the outcome of the international roadcheck?

• Twenty-three percent of these vehicles and 4.2 percent of drivers that received Level I inspections, the most comprehensive and common vehicle inspection level, were placed out of service.
• One-fifth of commercial motor vehicles inspected (Level I, II or III) were placed out of service.
• Of the 62,000 inspections, over 40,000 were North American Standard (NAS) Level I inspections. Twenty-three percent of these Level I inspections (9,398) were placed out of service for vehicle-related violations.

The top three out-of-service vehicle violations were for brake systems (26.9 percent), cargo securement (15.7 percent) and tires/wheels (15.1 percent).

The international roadcheck also focuses on driver safety:

• Of the over 62,000 inspections conducted in 2017 across Level I, II and III, 4.7 percent (2,940) of drivers were placed out of service for driver-related violations.

The top three driver-related violations were for hours of service (32.3 percent of driver out-of-service violations), wrong class license (14.9 percent) and false log book (11.3 percent). While still high, these numbers are a drop from the 2016 results, which saw HOS violations at 46.8 percent and false logs at 16.4 percent. Clearly, there is still more work to do to ensure HOS compliance, the theme for this year’s International Roadcheck.
 
With 2017’s ELD mandate now in full swing, it’s easier today for companies to ensure they have the correct tools to ensure and maintain compliance. Fleet management solutions automate compliance, removing the potential for human error and reducing the likelihood of costly violation fees. Drivers no longer have to fill out tedious paperwork, but can digitally log their hours of service. Managers can rest easy, knowing both parties will be alerted if they’re at risk of non-compliance.

How can you ensure that your drivers and your fleet management team are aware and prepared for the 2018 International Roadcheck? 

From the Teletrac Navman Carrier Safety Checklist, here are several highlights to review:

• HOS and RODS logs - Manage the collection of all HOS RODS logs for required retention period (6 months). Ensure retention history is complete and any gaps are properly documented.
• Driver incidents - Manage and review driver moving violation incidence reports such as tickets, fines, incidents, accidents, etc.
• Compliance - Manage compliance assessment and audit risk reports for performance measuring. Initiate disciplinary actions for non-compliant behavior.
• Risk - Produce counter measures to manage or reduce risk, such as driver and dispatcher training.
• Driver administration - Manage driver license information, endorsements, medical exam records and renewals. Maintain renewal reminders and warn of existing or pending driver ineligibility.
• CSA score - Review current Compliance, Safety, and Accountability score to identify risk and where to focus for improvements.
• PSP record - Review Pre-Employment Screening Program record which focuses on driver’s individual scores.

Stay safe during the 2018 CVSA International Roadcheck, and let’s all work towards lowering violations for vehicles and drivers!