Update on the CSA Program, June 30, 2017

One of the tools QualifiedCarriers.com provides clients, is the ability to set your own thresholds for a variety of motor carrier safety and/or compliance data, with FMCSA’s Compliance, Safety and Accountability (“CSA”). Congress commissioned The National Academy of Sciences (“NAS”) to conduct a comprehensive review of the CSA program to test the validity of the system and the impact of its scores on the public who might consider using them. The NAS has completed its review. We’ll highlight some of the findings.

The program was found to be “structured in a reasonable way,” that it has sound reason behind the method of identifying motor carriers with a certain alert status, but that it should be done by a more statistical, measurable, principled approach. NAS took issue with FMCSA’s use of experts instead of relying on data.

The NAS did not make a recommendation as to whether SMS results and scores should be available to the public. However, the NAS recommends that the Agency conduct a detailed review and analysis of the potential impacts that those scores will have on the industry and the public if they are made readily available. With this said, CSA’s percentile scores may be hidden while that impact study is performed.

NAS recommended multiple quality and transparency improvements be made by FMCSA. Specifically, CSA should be a system that relies more upon data than selected expert opinion; FMCSA should embrace transparency so data quality can be tested and improved; NAS supports the direct estimation of variability in scores and rankings; all of which should allow FMCSA to better adapt to changes in the future. Additionally, NAS encouraged FMCSA to collaborate closely with state law enforcement to improve data quality and to implement a National Minimum Uniform Crash Criteria—something some in FMCSA and safety advocates have been loath to accept.

NAS provided additional advice to FMCSA, suggesting it consider evaluating both percentile ranks and absolute measures, when making decisions regarding whether to issue a carrier an SMS alert. Presumably, NAS recognized that forcing a percentile number, is akin to grading on a curve. Considering both absolute and percentile scores allows law enforcement to have a bigger, better picture.

Finally, NAS’ review contained one already new and controversial suggestion. NAS, wrote of its desire to see FMCSA collect more operational and financial information on carriers, including compensation style and data, driver turnover and other data that might provide more complexion. The controversy lies in the compensation piece. Ironically, while NAS suggests FMCSA rely more upon data than expert, it ran afoul of its own advice when it referenced an expert opinion that salary drivers are “known to be” safer than drivers paid on a mileage basis. No comprehensive or definitive study on this exists.

We continue to watch this carefully, and will keep our clients posted as to future events. QualifiedCarriers.com provides daily and periodic updates on the quality of data for your carriers, and, if subscribed, keeps your documents and insurance certificates updated. We have many tools to assist you in evaluating your carriers.

Small US Trucking Companies Bolster Capacity

Read the article from Journal of Commerce quoting QualifiedCarriers.com CEO, Jeff Tucker, at www.joc.com.

Updates to Your Account

As we announced earlier this summer, QualifiedCarriers.com now provides the raw data released by FMCSA as Absolute Value BASIC Scores. There is no intervention threshold tied to absolute scores, therefore, while customers have access to set their own thresholds, QualifiedCarriers.com has no guidance as to where those thresholds should be set and does not advocate setting of a threshold. 

The feature indicating an upward or downward trend in month-to-month scores has been reinstated. The green down arrow indicates that the score has decreased since the previous month and the red up arrow indicates an increase in the score since the previous month.

Finally, you’ll find a new feature allowing you to view a carrier’s out of service (OOS) percentile for both driver and vehicle, along with the ability to compare it to the national average of OOS for each category.

Please contact the team at QualifiedCarriers.com if you have any questions on the new features.

QualifiedCarriers.com Updates

As we know, on December 4, 2015, Congress and the President passed the FAST Act, which, among other things, removed CSA’s BASIC score percentiles from public view, and sent the scores for further, third party analysis, due to many errors and concerns among the DOT Inspector General; the Government Accountability Office; academia, the public and motor carriers.

QualifiedCarriers.com, as a member of the public, has no access to percentile scores.

In 2016, FMCSA began releasing absolute values of BASIC scores, which are not in percentiles, but in raw data. From this, we may not determine what scores are high or low, necessarily. There is no intervention threshold tied to absolute scores.

Because of customer demand, we are adjusting features, effective mid-August 2016, to include absolute scores to show, and to allow customers to set their own thresholds. We have absolutely no guidance as to where customers might set their internal email notification thresholds, nor do we necessarily support setting a threshold. We will also resume month to month trending reports on each absolute scores, and bring back the feature that puts a green down arrow, and red up arrow beside scores that went down or up since the previous month.

Additionally, due to customer demand, we are introducing a new feature, which will allow customers to view a carrier’s out of service (OOS) percentiles for both driver and vehicle, and compare it to the national average of OOS for each.

Our new services will be available in mid-August 2016. 

An Inside Look at the New QualifiedCarriers.com

Join us for a Webinar on March 5, 2014.

An Inside Look at the New QualifiedCarriers.com

QualifiedCarriers.com is better than ever!

Please join us for a brief, free Webinar to review recent enhancements.

See why our current subscribers are raving about …

•     their increased control over the carrier compliance data they receive from FMCSA through QC.com

•     QC.com’s automated system to instantly “qualify” or “disqualify” any carrier, based on the user’s own criteria

•     the powerful tools for managing carrier insurance certificates, contracts, and any other carrier document – by using QC.com’s enhanced DMS (Document Management System)

Wednesday, March 5th at 2:00 PM EST.

Register now! Space is limited.

https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/841907074

Jeff Tucker Among Industry Stakeholders to Commend GAO Report

QualifiedCarriers.com Co-Founder Jeff Tucker and other industry stakeholders recently endorsed the Government Accountability Office's (GAO) recommendations for "vigorous changes" to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) to improve the Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA) program.

Read Tucker's recommendations in the full article by Logistics Management:

Industry Stakeholders Commend GAO Report on CSA Scoring System

QUALIFIEDCARRIERS.COM LAUNCHES QUALIFIEDMARINETERMINALS.COM

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

QUALIFIEDCARRIERS.COM LAUNCHES QUALIFIEDMARINETERMINALS.COM

Cherry Hill, NJ USA, February 18, 2013

QualifedCarriers.com CEO Jeff Tucker is pleased to announce the launch of QualifiedMarineTerminals.com.

As the petro-chemical industry seeks to reduce spills, accidents, losses and other risks, the industry is moving toward a more comprehensive and global standard for screening, selecting, and monitoring marine terminals for compliance, safety, and security.  To assist this effort, QualifiedCarriers.com has launched a Web-based risk management toolbox specifically designed for managing marine terminal risk.  The Web site, QualifiedMarineTerminals.com, provides users with platforms for measuring compliance against industry standards, performing marine terminal self-assessments and on-site audits, and launching and tracking corrective and preventive action (CAPA) .  The system comes complete with secure document management, task scheduling functions, and a variety of related tools.

A major oil exploration, refining retailer, and long-time subscriber to QualifiedCarriers.com, approached QualifiedCarriers in early 2011, seeking a solution for growing marine terminal risk.  The client had been relying on QualifedCarriers.com for years as a Web-based toolbox for managing risk associated with hiring motor carriers.  Seeking a similar solution for marine terminal risk, the client naturally turned to QualifiedCarriers.

QualifiedCarriers.com is the nation’s most comprehensive USDOT data reporting and compliance toolbox for shippers. Among other things, we offer secure document management for key carrier documents, plus e-mail alerts when urgent changes occur to a carrier’s FMCSA status (e.g., authority, safety rating). We are the only firm of this type founded and managed by professional risk managers.  Our clients benefit from our knowledge and involvement of matters occurring in Washington, at FMCSA, PHMSA, and on Capitol Hill. Our Co-founder, Jeff Tucker has chaired the TIA Carrier Selection Framework Committee since 2006, is a member of the FMCSA MCSAC CSA Subcommittee, and has testified on CSA before Congress.

Contact: Jeff Tucker, CEO; jeff.tucker@qualifiedcarriers.com ; 856-773-9325 ext. 122; mobile: 856-498-5361 ###

QualifiedCarriers.com | 900 Dudley Ave, Suite 250, Cherry Hill, NJ 08002 | 856.773.9325