FAIRER FUNDING FOR THE FUTURE: EXPLORING MILEAGE-BASED USER FEES

Tags: Transportation Funding, Travel in PA, Sustainability, PennDOT Connects, Driver and Vehicle Services, Community Relations

January 13, 2023 11:00 AM

By: PennDOT

​As we continue our commitment to phasing out the gas tax, PennDOT is looking to new, more equitable and innovative ways to fund transportation infrastructure needs. Mileage-Based User Fees (MBUF), also known as Road-User Fees (RUF), refers to charging drivers by the number of miles they travel – not by the amount of gas they buy and use. 

Interested in comparing MBUF with the state gas tax on your vehicle? Try our new MBUF Gas Tax Comparison Calculator.

NHTSA begins process for possible trailer side-underride-guard rulemaking

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has started the process for a potential proposal to require side underride guards on newly manufactured trailers. The agency on Friday sent an advance notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPRM) to the White House’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB), which must approve the notice before it’s published in the Federal Register.

On January 31, 2023, FMCSA removed the following device from the list of registered ELDs due to the company’s failure to meet the minimum requirements established in 49 CFR part 395, subpart B, appendix A.

ELD Name: ELD ONE ELD Model number:OELD01 ELD Identifier:OWLA01 ELD Provider: TMS ONE

This device now appears on FMCSA’s Revoked Devices list.

Motor carriers and drivers who use the device listed above must take the following actions:

1. Discontinue using the revoked device(s) and revert to paper logs or logging software to record required hours of service data.

Legislation that would dedicate funds to expand truckers’ access to parking nationwide was recently introduced in the House of Representatives.

The Safer Highways and Increased Performance for Interstate Trucking, or SHIP IT, Act, introduced by Reps. Dusty Johnson (R-S.D.) and Jim Costa (D-Calif.), would approve nearly $800 million through fiscal 2026 for parking projects connected to commercial vehicle operations.

“It is the sense of Congress that it should be a national priority to address the shortage of parking for commercial motor vehicles on the federal-aid highway system to improve highway safety,” according to the measure, which also aims to promote safety and enhance capacity along freight corridors. Its committee consideration has yet to be scheduled.

We had our first significant weather event of the season on Wednesday.  I couldn't believe how carelessly people were driving.  It was snowing and 34 degrees out and people were flying past me like it was dry and 70 degrees out.  I counted 5 vehicles either in the median or in the trees on the shoulder on my way home and the roads were not even that bad.  Lets all remember to reduce speed and increase following distances during the bad weather.  Remember the old Amish saying, "the hurrieder I go the behinder I get."  Be safe.

The Ohio State Highway Patrol (OSHP) is seeking a truck driver who was involved in an accident that killed a fellow truck driver in the Toledo area on Tuesday afternoon.

The incident occurred shortly before 2 p.m. on January 17 on I-280 in Lake Township, Ohio.

Troopers say that a semi truck traveling south on I-280 lost a set of dual tires from one of its axles.

“The dual tires went through the median and struck a northbound semi-tractor trailer combination,” OSHP said.

The tires struck the cab of the northbound tanker truck on the driver’s side.

PMTA Safety Management Council meeting will be held at the America on Wheels museum in Allentown and the topic of discussion is wheel end components.  The above tragic story highlights the importance of maintaining those rotating assemblies.  Hope to see you all there.

Sheetz is temporarily lowering the cost of diesel fuel.

The company is dropping the diesel price by 50 cents at all locations through the end of January.

Sheetz says the discount will save commercial truck drivers about $60 for every fill-up from empty to full.

According to AAA, the average price for a gallon of diesel in Pennsylvania is $5.39.

That translates into more regulation.  The focus discussed by the panel at the Transportation Research Board included a speed limiter rule, plans to ensure problem drivers are not able to move from state to state, a joint automatic emergency braking rule with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), a crash causation study, driver compensation study, detention time study, rear impact guards, predatory truck leasing and the need to attract females to the industry.

Today is the Start of CVSA’s Human Trafficking Awareness Initiative in the U.S.

JANUARY 9, 2023

Today is the first day of the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s (CVSA) five-day annual awareness and outreach effort to educate commercial motor vehicle drivers, motor carriers, law enforcement officers and the general public about the crime of human trafficking, the signs to look for and what to do if you suspect someone is being trafficked.

This week, CVSA law enforcement jurisdictions in the U.S. will track human trafficking awareness and outreach activities and events, and submit that data to the Alliance. CVSA will gather the information and report the results this summer.

In addition, in the months leading up to the awareness campaign, CVSA educated its membership and the general public on human trafficking through webinars, radio appearances and online resources. The Alliance also worked with Truckers Against Trafficking to distribute wallet cards and window decals, which are still available upon request.

CVSA selected this week for its 2023 Human Trafficking Awareness Initiative to align with U.S. National Human Trafficking Awareness Day, which is Jan. 11, and National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month, which is January.

FMCSA Pre-employment Requirement Will Go Into Effect January 6, 2023

On November 4, 2022, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA) Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse published information titled “Pre-employment Investigations for Drug and Alcohol Program Violations.”  The Clearinghouse notice (re-posted below) is a reminder to certain employers regarding a change requirement that will go into effect January 6, 2023.  On that date, three years of violation data will become available in the Clearinghouse and a pre-employment Clearinghouse query will satisfy the requirement to investigate whether a prospective driver had previous drug and alcohol program violations, as required by 49 CFR 391.23(e).  This query will also satisfy the requirements of 49 CFR 40.25.

Please be aware the Clearinghouse contains only information about a driver’s drug/alcohol testing history when employed by FMCSA-regulated employers.  If an employer is considering an applicant who was employed by an employer regulated by a DOT agency other than FMCSA (such as the Federal Railroad Administration, Federal Transit Administration, Federal Aviation Administration, etc.), that applicant’s information would not be reported to the Clearinghouse.  In these situations, the employer still is required to directly request drug and alcohol violation information from those DOT-regulated employers in accordance with 391.23(e)(4)(ii) and 40.25.

For any questions, please contact FMCSA’s Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse at [email protected]