FMCSA has seen “encouraging results” from the newly launched Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse. The new program had been long expected and many were openly wondering how it would be received by the industry and truck drivers at-large. Well, according to the agency overseeing it, things are going quite well.
So far, the clearinghouse has detected and identified almost 8,000 positive substance abuse tests. Registrants of the program number over half-a-million. Of course, there are far more truck drivers than that operating in the United States.
FMCSA Acting Administrator Jim Mullen was quoted as saying the agency has “seen encouraging results from the Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse, but there’s still work to do to ensure we identify more drivers who should not be behind the wheel. He went on to say that “the clearinghouse is a positive step, and the agency continues to work closely with industry, law enforcement, and our state partners to ensure its implementation is effective.”
Some Problems Remain
For most industry-watchers, trucking industry stakeholders have so far held a positive view of the program. According to a statement released by the American Trucking Associations (ATA), the fact that there has already been a noticeable bump in detection shows how necessary this program is. Making this a part of the employment screening process should not be mandatory.
Of course, no rollout of a new government program goes without hiccups. Many trucking operators and truck drivers have reported problems using the clearinghouse website. There have also been some issues with how owner-operators label themselves within the system. The problem arises when owner-operators switch fleets.
When using the clearinghouse, owner-operators must register as “drivers” in the system when they register. This will allow them to switch carriers. Trucking companies found that when they queried the system for information, it took several tries. Unfortunately, right now no one knows when owner-operators will be able to properly link up to the portal.
Many have also complained that the overall navigation of the site does not provide a good user experience. The initial roll-out was accused of being a mess and plagued with bugs and technical issues.
Fortunately, it seems the FMCSA has been listening, as they have been continuously making updates to the site as the rollout proceeds. While the owner-operator registration issue still lingers, many other improvements have been made.
Still, trucking companies point to the overall success of the clearinghouse as a sign that when the trucking industry asks for something related to safety, the government responds. It represents a tangible example of the partnership between trucking industry stakeholders and government organizations.
The FMCSA did say, however, that it does not view the clearinghouse as a safety and compliance tool by itself. In their release, the agency stated that “the goal of the clearinghouse is to ensure that such drivers [those who have violated federal drug and alcohol testing program requirements and are prohibited from operating a CMV] receive the required evaluation and treatment before they have the opportunity to resume driving.”
What Does Registration Include?
Let’s now look at the clearinghouse itself. Who needs to register? Direct from the FMCSA website:
- Employers of commercial driver’s license (CDL) and commercial learner’s permit (CLP) holders, or their designated service agents, and medical review officers who report drug and alcohol program violations that occurred on or after January 6, 2020.
- Employers or their designated service agents who conduct required queries which inform them whether prospective or current employees have drug and alcohol program violations in their clearinghouse records. Employers must purchase a query plan before conducting queries in the clearinghouse – query plans must be purchased from the FMCSA clearinghouse website only.
- Drivers who respond to employer consent requests or would like to view their clearinghouse record when applying for a job.
- Substance abuse professionals who report on the completion of driver initial assessments and driver eligibility for return-to-duty testing for violations committed on or after January 6, 2020.
Fortunately, there is no cost associated with registering within the program. While some worried the agency may take this as an opportunity to extract money from the industry, this fear did not bear fruit.
For interested parties looking for resources on the program, the FMCSA has created brochures and instructional aids that can be found at the clearinghouse website.
A Look at Economic Indicators
Next, we want to have a look at the health of our industry and the broader economy. What will the 2020 growth rate look like? According to most analysts, barring something completely unexpected, the trucking industry can expect flat to moderate growth demand and rates in 2020. It is also expected most of the demand will come in the second half of the year.
Overall economic growth continues to expand in 2020. Manufacturing saw a big rebound from prior quarters when it was reporting negative to flat growth. Overall construction spending has also seen big gains since June. Housing starts in December were the highest they have been since 2006. All this while mortgage rates are still at all-time lows. Big industries are obviously preparing for economic growth to continue.
But more than industries, even the consumer seems to be feeling in a good mood about the state of things. Retail sales hit an all-time high in December and the inventory-to-sales ratio dropped in November. And it could be that this number was significantly impacted by e-commerce. But now the question is: How is trucking fairing?
A Look at Trucking Indicators
According to trucking research organization FTR, the overall forecast for 2020 truck loadings stands at an increase of 0.4% for the year. We appear to be in a negative environment, with most of the expected trucking growth to come in the spot market segment. This comes as contract rates continue to decline. One segment that has done particularly well in 2020 is the refrigerated freight segment. Reefer growth is expected to increase by 2.5% this year.
Meanwhile, flatbeds and specialized rates may find themselves in a mildly negative environment. This would represent a drop in growth of less than one percent. But it is important to remember that demand is just one side of the coin. The other side is capacity.
Capacity and trucking industry movement is driven by truck driver supply. And there are several trucking issues that could impact capacity in 2020. One such example is rising insurance costs. Many motor carriers have lost their operating authority in the past year or so since insurance costs began rising so much.
How Costs Have Risen
The numbers report a sobering statistic. Indicated insurance premiums as measured by marginal cost per mile rose 12% in 2018 over 2017. Insurance costs were by far the highest operational costs facing trucking companies today. As numbers come in, it appears 2019 was just as painful as previous years where insurance costs are concerned.
Although safety technology usage has been becoming more prevalent across the industry, an influx of inexperienced truck drivers has negatively impacted crash numbers. With increased crashes comes higher insurance and litigation costs. Some trucking companies simply cannot cope with them and must shut down.
Another issue that could impact capacity, as well as several other factors like utilization and productivity, includes the final transition to the ELD that went into effect December of last year. Even the clearinghouse represents an unknown factor. If a lot more truck drivers are disqualified, this could impact the overall truck driver pool.
Traffic bottlenecks also represent a rising cost across trucking companies. According to one recent estimate, bottlenecks cost the trucking industry more than $74 billion annually. A recently-released report on the top 100 truck bottlenecks in the United States was quite sobering. Even more, the report showed that the degradation of our nation’s infrastructure is s leading culprit in the problem.
The report, based on 2019 data, shows the number of locations with significant congestion has risen 92% in five years, while traffic congestion has increased by 10%. Significant congestion refers to roads with average daily speeds of 45 mph or less. With trucking companies facing increasing costs from so many sources, some wonder what the future will bring. Likely, it will all depend on the continued trajectory of economic growth.
from Quick Transport Solutions Trucking Blog https://ift.tt/3dI8qX0
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