Driver Matt Arnett of Sayersville, Ky., demonstrates how drivers tighten ratchet bindings on steel coils as they prepare for hauling the material at Sterling Express Ltd. in Valparaiso. He and other drivers are bracing for new changes under hours-of-service and cargo securement rules imposed by the federal government. John Luke / The Times
Driver Matt Arnett of Sayersville, Ky., demonstrates how drivers tighten ratchet bindings on steel coils as they prepare for hauling the material at Sterling Express Ltd. in Valparaiso. He and other drivers are bracing for new changes under hours-of-service and cargo securement rules imposed by the federal government. John Luke / The Times
BY DEBRA GRUSZECKI

Times of Northwest Indiana Staff Writer

Cargo handlers predict clogged roads at dawn and jammed truck stops at dusk when a new federal law takes effect Sunday.

The new hours-of-service rules were set up by the U.S. Department of Transportation's Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to reduce the number of truck crashes.

Federal transportation officials predict the new rules will save up to 75 lives, prevent as many as 1,326 fatigue-induced crashes and more than 6,900 property-damage-only crashes annually, saving the American economy roughly $628 million each year.

But truck drivers say the new rules -- the first change of this kind since 1939 -- could prove to be disastrous for the trucking industry, the traveling public and American consumers.

Versatility in freight hauling just went out the window, said Maro Allen, owner of Sterling Express Ltd., 101 W. U.S. 6, Valparaiso, a company that runs about 50 trucks with 30 owner-operators for local and cross-country hauls.

Businesses that rely on just-in-time deliveries may need to rethink their freight handling procedures, Allen predicted, and "Mr. and Mrs. America" will likely be bounding along the nation's highways during the day with more interstate commerce trucks handling hazardous materials or cargo weighing more than 10,000 pounds.

Allen said the industry has just managed to rebound from losses as a result of tariffs on steel and foreign shipments.

"The trucking industry is considered to be a leg of the nation's new economy," Allen said. "And our second leg just got cut out from under us. It's not a pretty picture."

New hours-of-service rules allow drivers an extra hour on the road -- from 10 to 11 hours -- but pare the overall shift from 15 to 14 hours.

The new rules also require a 10-hour interval between shifts, instead of eight. And truck drivers accustomed to splitting their log to work a 15-hour shift by going "out of service" as they waited for their trailer to get unloaded or reloaded, or their rig to be repaired, will have to count every moment on the job toward their shift.

Allen's son, Maro Allen Jr., predicted the already clogged Borman Expressway will get even more gummed up in the morning because truck drivers relying on their right to split a shift will not be able to break their drive into daylight and moonlight runs.

Here's how scenarios like these can unfold:

A truck leaves its yard with a steel coil bound for Chicago. It takes one hour to get there and 2 1/2 hours to unload. That done, the driver heads to his next cargo pickup point one hour away. Reloading takes five hours. By now, the driver, who has logged only two hours of mileage, has put in a 9 1/2-hour day.

Because the second shipment is bound for St. Louis and the driver must log a one-hour lunch and at least two safety naps at 15 minutes each, he will have four hours to reach his destination. Because it takes longer than that to reach St. Louis, he must decide if he will park on the side of the road for 10 hours, or, end the day before making an end-run to Missouri.

"The new hours of service penalizes the drivers," said Dan Mayer, a safety director for Steel Transport of Portage. "They get paid for their miles, not time spent to load or reload a truck."

Mayer said the situation could prompt experienced drivers on the brink of retirement to hang up their log books for good, putting more "rookie" drivers on the road.

Other industry experts surmised new forms of fatigue will set in, as drivers may be tempted to fudge on their lunches and mandatory breaks.

However, Annette Sandberg, administrator of the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, said this week the new regulations provide commercial truck drivers a work and rest schedule more in line with their body rhythm, thereby reducing driver fatigue.

"This new rule combines the best scientific research and real-world analysis to prevent driver fatigue," she said.

Added costs for truck cargo handlers could come into play because of a prediction by freight handlers of the need to buy extra "drop" trailers to avoid whittling down the hours in a log book as a driver awaits a second load.

Companies including Snyder and Swift trucking, and Wal-Mart, have collectively estimated added costs of as much as $30 million a year to implement the new rule.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, however, has said that if the new hours of service rules can reduce commercial vehicle crashes, the cost to move freight will drop. Fewer accidents will drive down insurance costs and litigation for the industry.

A 1 percent drop in freight handling costs would represent an added gain of $98 billion annually to the economy, according to DOT spokesman Andy Beck.

The U.S. Department of Transportation has urged states to write truck drivers warnings, instead of citations, for all but flagrant violations of the new hours-of-service regulations for 60 days. The reprieve has been requested to help educate drivers on the new rules.

"As we get closer to the implementation date, we are finding that too many truckers still have questions about these rules,' Transportation Secretary Norm Mineta said. "It's our version of on-the-job training for drivers who aren't sure how or whether the safety rules apply to them."

The decision also was made to ensure DOT officials have time to work out a solution with Congress on rules for truck drivers who work for public utilities and respond to emergency outages. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration also plans to staff a toll-free telephone line to answer drivers' questions. The number is (800) 598-5664.

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