U.S Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood today announced the feds will now prohibit texting by drivers of commercial vehicles such as large trucks and buses. The prohibition is effective immediately and is the latest in a series of actions taken by the Department to combat distracted driving since the Secretary convened a national summit on the issue last September.
“We want the drivers of big rigs and buses and those who share the roads with them to be safe,” said Secretary LaHood. “This is an important safety step and we will be taking more to eliminate the threat of distracted driving.”
The action is the result of the Department’s interpretation of standing rules. Truck and bus drivers who text while driving commercial vehicles may be subject to civil or criminal penalties of up to $2,750.
“Our regulations will help prevent unsafe activity within the cab,” said Anne Ferro, Administrator for the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). “We want to make it crystal clear to operators and their employers that texting while driving is the type of unsafe activity that these regulations are intended to prohibit.”
FMCSA research shows that drivers who send and receive text messages take their eyes off the road for an average of 4.6 seconds out of every 6 seconds while texting. At 55 miles per hour, this means that the driver is traveling the length of a football field, including the end zones, without looking at the road. Drivers who text while driving are more than 20 times more likely to get in an accident than non-distracted drivers. Because of the safety risks associated with the use of electronic devices while driving, FMCSA is also working on additional regulatory measures that will be announced in the coming months.
Late last year President Obama also signed an Executive Order directing federal employees not to engage in text messaging while driving government-owned vehicles or with government-owned equipment. Federal employees were required to comply with the ban starting on December 30, 2009.
The National Safety Council estimates that 200,000 crashes of all types on U.S. roads are caused by drivers who are “texting.”
The regulatory guidance on today’s announcement will be on public display in the Federal Register January 26 and will appear in print in the Federal Register on January 27.
The public can follow the progress of the U.S. Department of Transportation in working to combat distracted driving www.distraction.gov.
For Immediate Release Contact: Diane Hurns, 847-768-3413, dhurns@asse.org
ASSE Announces Release of New Roadway Work Zone Safety Standards
Des Plaines, IL (January 5, 2010) — In an effort to address transportation-related incidents, which are still the number one cause of on-the-job deaths, the American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) recently announced the approval of a new voluntary consensus standard, the American National Standards Institute (ANSI)/ASSE A10.47-2009 “Work Zone Safety for Highway Construction”.
The A10.47-2009 standard is aimed at protecting workers from injuries and illnesses that result from working in work zones, establishing safe work practices in highway work zones, and preventing vehicle crashes in highway work zones. A work zone is an area of a highway with construction, maintenance/repair or utility work activities. The standard covers workers engaged in construction, utility work, maintenance, or repair activities on any area of a highway.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), out of a total of 5,071 workplace deaths in 2008, 2,053 people died in transportation-related incidents, 1,149 of those deaths were on highways and 322 of those workers died from being struck by a vehicle.
“OSHA has few standards that cover work zone safety,” said A10.47 Subcommittee Chair Scott Schneider, CIH. “The Federal Highway Administration is focused on safety for motorists and workers but also on reducing delays to the traveling public. Work zone safety standards also vary by State. The A10.47 standard is intended to fill the gap and to help contractors develop best practices to protect the safety and health of road construction workers.
Schneider added, “Each year, many construction workers are killed in work zones. They are run over by motorists, backed over by construction vehicles and electrocuted by overhead power lines. This standard deals with this wide range of hazards. Following it could save many of these lives.”
ANSI approved the standard on November 24, 2009 and the effective date is set for February 24, 2010.
The standard will be available soon for purchase. For more information, contact ASSE customer service at 847-699-2929 or e-mail customerservice@asse.org.
ASSE serves as the secretariat for the A10 Accredited Standards Committee on construction and demolition operations. The A10 voluntary consensus standards serve as guides to contractors, labor and equipment manufacturers in the construction and demolition industry.
Founded in 1911, the Des Plaines, IL-based ASSE is the largest and oldest professional safety organization and is committed to protecting people, property and the environment. Its more than 32,000 occupational safety, health and environmental professional members lead, manage, supervise, research and consult on safety, health, transportation and environmental issues in all industries, government, labor, health care and education. For more information please go to www.asse.org.
We are excited to announce that Advanced Safety & Health’s Louisville Kentucky office is now a certified provider of the National Safety Council Flagger training course for Kentucky employers.
Course Information: The flagger course is a combination of lecture, visual presentations, and outdoor exercises lasting approximately four hours. This program follows the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD). A written examination will be administered at the conclusion of the course. In accordance with Kentucky Transportation Cabinet requirements, only those individuals who have completed the entire Basic Work Zone and Flagger Course may be tested. Individuals who successfully complete the course and exam will qualify and receive a two (2) year certification to flag on Kentucky roadways.
Course Objective:
Recognize the need to use specific equipment when performing flagging responsibilities.
Correctly execute the basic Stop/Proceed/Slow directions.
Set up a flagger station in such a way as to maximize their own safety and the safety of the crew and road users.
Perform emergency flagging.
Contact us at (502) 240-6910 to register for a class or have us bring the class to you.
Note: While this program meets FHWS (Federal Highway Administration) and OSHA (Occupational Safety & Health Administration) requirements, it may not be approved in some states due to State Department of Transportation requirements. This program does meet Kentucky Department of Transportation requirements for Flaggers.
More often than not in the course of conversation about my beloved profession the question comes up these days about OSHA , safety, and where it is all headed under the new administration. I have come to the conclusion that my answer is “we are on the verge of a Perfect Storm”. Let me put the factors in motion for you. When the actual Perfect Storm occurred around Halloween of 1991 it was a culmination of three significant weather related events. These events were a low pressure system, a Hurricane, and a high pressure system. I am seeing the same thing today with what is going on with OSHA.
The Low Pressure System - The life cycle of OSHA:
In it’s heyday of the 70’s the agency was new and aggressive and grew to its peak in the Carter administration with almost a “crazed activist” demeanor. During both terms of Reagan and the George H.W. Bush term the agency was still powerful and responsible for such new regulations as Hazard Communication, Control of Hazardous Energy (Lockout/Tagout), Respiratory Protection, and several others.
It wasn’t until the two terms of the Clinton administration that we saw the agency begin to mellow and drift from its origional mission. If you will recall it was Al Gore who proposed a more “mature” OSHA focused around creative partnerships with business and industry and it was only at the midnight hour of the Clinton administration when the poorly written Ergonomic standard was shoved out the door so the George W. Bush administration would have time to kill it, and be blamed for its demise.
Many now refer to OSHA as the toothless tiger and the EPA has significantly upstaged it on the “Fear” meter over the years with a much greater potential of seven figure fines and jail time for business owners and leadership. As OSHA is preparing to turn 40 years old many are calling for a complete overhaul of the organization.
The Hurricane - The Recession:
This current economic downturn has become a storm like many businesses have never seen before. Many were not prepared, or simply hit so hard that no amount of preparation would have protected them from its wrath. Employers are hurting. Many are failing and don’t have the luxury of the government jumping in to prop them up through this storm.
Contrary to what some believe, the majority of employers are not the bad guys. They want to do what is the correct and ethical thing. But in these struggling economic times many have been forced to throw anything they possibly can overboard just to stay afloat. In many instances this may include their occupational safety and health personnel and programs. Right or wrong it was a decision that had to be made. After all, worker’s compensation premiums and OSHA fines are not what is nipping at the business owner’s heels. It is payroll, cash flow, lost sales, and creditors. A close friend and Safety Director for a major corporation made a comment to me the other day that when you are consuming all your financial resources to bail the boat, you are not too concerned about your safe boating certification.
The High Pressure System – Obama Administration:
Enter the “New OSHA” under the direction of Labor Secretary Hilda Solis. Ms. Solis has been an outspoken critic of OSHA for some time and has made it clear under her direction OSHA is about to heat up enforcement and promulgate new standards. In a speech given by Solis in April she made the following statements.
“Under my watch, enforcement of our labor laws will be intensified to provide an effective deterrent to employers who put their workers’ lives at risk. OSHA and MSHA will be about workers — not voluntary programs and alliances.”
Then Jordon Barab, Solis’ pick to run OSHA (for now) who’s opinions and thoughts are easy to find and read due to his five year diatribe on safety, OSHA, and his antipathy toward the republican party on his blog that he calls “confined space“. It is quite possible that he could be the most radical and aggressive OSHA leader since Eula Bingham during the Carter administration. OSHA under Barab has already committed to an increased budget, adding over a hundred new enforcement officers and the rapid development of over a half a dozen new regulations. There is strong congressional action as well that would increase the monetary amount of OSHA fines as well as the likelihood of jail time for individuals for specific OSHA violations.
Convergence:
As these three factors begin to converge I suspect the worst possible scenario. What was once viewed by many as pretty much a toothless tiger is rapidly evolving into a hungry beast with an attitude. Employers distracted by other issues and in a survival mood being caught unaware and unprepared now become the victim of their own ignorance and the changing winds of this growing storm.
I don’t have a crystal ball but from my perspective some of this is pretty obvious. Expect much more aggressive enforcement of OSHA regulations. We are already seeing it on a federal level with more utilization of willful and repeat penalties that are carrying the maximum allowed fines.Look for significant increases in criminal prosecution of business owners and senior leadership when it comes to work place fatalities, catastrophes, and serious injuries. Just a few weeks ago a California business owner was given nine months in jail and ordered to personally pay nearly $250,000 in restitution due to two workers falling through skylights during roofing work. I am afraid these types of stories are going to become more commonplace when employers are forced to make hard decisions in order to keep their business afloat as they stretch their resources even thinner. If businesses don’t have the capital then they can’t replace aging machinery and processes, they will be forced to cut back on preventive maintenance, personnel, equipment and training. We will begin to see more catastrophic events such as the ConAgra explosion in North Carolina, the ammonia leak in Kentucky and many others.
Expect to see new regulations in relative short order. These will include Occupational Exposure to Crystalline Silica, Occupational Exposure to Beryllium, Methylene Chloride, Occupational Exposure to Diacetyl, Confined Space in Construction, Cranes and Derricks in Construction, Ergonomics, and Combustible Dust. This will stretch employers even further as they struggle to implement these new programs. Are they necessary? Probably some, but I fear the current administration is going to be the preverbal “Bully in the Playground” and the scene is not going to be pretty.
On top of all of this, when you look at where workers are really getting killed while in the work environment, 57% of the occupational fatalities in 2007 occurred in either auto or transportation related events; or due to homicide or other workplace violence events. OSHA has no regulations for either of these, nor are they in the hopper for rule making. I ask why? As an example the OSHA standard for powered industrial trucks does not specifically require the operator to wear a seat belt or other restraint device.
Don’t bother to contact me and tell me OSHA can and does cite for powered industrial truck operators who don’t wear seat belts. I know they use the general duty clause. My point is it’s not in the standard.
Outcome:
Some will not survive the storm. A few business owners will be put out of business and made an example of, with costly fines and prison time. Some will throw up their hands in defeat and either sell the company or close their doors for good. A number will take the risk, do nothing and slip under the radar screen, at least for a while. There is also a number with superior safety and health plans who are basically in compliance already. The vast majority will go to great pains and expense to achieve compliance the best they can.
After all this, I predict we will see little decline in the overall injury and fatality rates over the next several years but a lot of casualties along the way.
This commentary presented by Dwayne Towles Vice President of Advanced Safety & Health. To receive our monthly electronic safety newsletter click here and scroll to the bottom right corner of the page.
New Research Reveals Greater Number of Teenage Fatalities
A study released on March 3 by the Archives of Pediatric and Adolescents Medicine that was jointly conducted with The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) and State Farm Insurance Companies shows that passengers aged 12 to 16 are more likely to die in a car crash than younger children. The study looked at 45,560 crashes involving 8 to 17 year old passengers between 2000 and 2005. During that time, 9,807 passengers in the targeted age group died in crashes. The ages of 12 to 14 show a peak for crash fatalities. The research showed that 54.4 percent were riding with a driver under the age of 20; nearly two-thirds were unrestrained; more than three-quarter of the crashes occurred on roads with posted speed limits above 45 miles per hour; and alcohol was a factor in one-fifth. Additional research shows that as kids grow into adolescence and become more independent, they are in cars with drivers other than their parents such as classmates, friends, or older siblings.CHOP does make recommendation for parents to help protect their children:
Insist on seat belts.
Set good examples. Don’t drink and drive, avoid distractions like cell phones, and obey the speed limits.
Set rules about safe passenger behavior.
Monitor your child’s travel.
Know and trust the driver. It’s not safe for your teen to ride with a driver with less than one year of driving experience.
U.S Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood today announced the feds will now prohibit texting by drivers of commercial vehicles such as large trucks and buses. The prohibition is effective immediately and is the latest in a series of actions taken by the Department to combat distracted driving since the Secretary convened a national summit on the issue last September.
