Posts Tagged “CSA”
When it comes to being proactive in working for improvements in the trucking industry, by speaking out and pushing for improved, if not fewer regulations, Jimmy DeMatteis certainly seems to do his share.
You might say he’s takin’ it to the streets fighting the bureaucracy in an effort to improve the trucking industy for everyone.
As the president of Des Moines Truck Brokers in Norwalk, IA, his company was named in 2009 as the National Broker of the Year by the National
Jimmy DeMatteis Association of Small Trucking Companies (NASTC). DeMatteis serves on the executive committee of ASECTT (Alliance for Safe Efficient and Competitive Truck Transportation) and is chair of the Transportation Intermediaries Association (TIA) Political Action Committee.
While involved in these groups, not to mention others, he recently led a $12 million building project that now is the new headquarters for Capital City Fruit and Des Moines Truck Brokers.
A lot of DeMatteis’ efforts have been through the ASECTT trying to get some sanity put into the CSA-210, which is administered by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). In the past he has blasted federal bureaucrats over the program which rates the safety of motor carriers. It also ends up rating many safe carriers as being unsafe, he states.
“The CSA scores are unproven, unreliable and based on factors the FMCSA doesn’t even understand,” DeMatteis states. “There has been massive amounts of costly research conducted and proven to be faulty. Yet every motor carrier on the road is subject to the CSA score at any given time. This could result in them being black balled from hauling freight.”
DeMatteis accuses the FMCSA of refusing to recognize their responsibility in this whole equation. His problem with this federal agency is it wants to “deputize” the trucking industry to police and do the job the bureaucrats should be doing. Instead, the FMCSA expects shippers and brokers to judge carrier fitness.
He points out FMCSA bases its safety program on percentages and no matter how many bad carriers are removed from the industry, there are always going to be 35 percent that are going have “alerts.” This is because the system only allows 65 percent of carriers to be considered safe operations at any one time.
As a result, DeMatteis contends some shippers are including requirements in contracts based on CSA scores that blacklist many good, small trucking companies. This results in many of these good small fleets going out of business because shippers and brokers refuse to work with them, due to so-called unsafe scores.
In the April issue of Dashboard, DTMB’s online newsletter, it lists goals of the ASECTT regarding CSA-210. They are:
Short Term Goal:
To require the FMCSA to redact publication of CSA 2010 methodology pending rulemaking or to otherwise affirm that data cannot be used in a court of law to establish vicarious liability and that shippers and brokers may rely upon the Agency’s current fitness determination of satisfactory, unsatisfactory or unrated (which is equivalent to satisfactory).
Long Term Goal:
To reestablish primacy of FMCSA for certifying safety, including preemption of state law.
For more details, visit www.asectt.blogspot.com
It is difficult to find anyone in the trucking industry more aware of the checkered past of truck brokers than Jimmy DeMatteis. For this reason, and simply because it is the right thing to do, Jimmy goes out of his way to make sure those people behind the wheel of the big rigs get a fair shake.
As president of Des Moines Truck Brokers, Inc. (DMTB) he knows the reputation of the company’s 43 year history is on the line with each load. It all began in 1951 with his dad, James A. DeMatteis (Jim Sr.) hauling produce. By 1960 he was a small fleet owner and three years later became a broker of exempt commodities.
Jim DeMatteis Sr. with LJ Mack circa 1960
Jim Sr. started DMTB in 1969 and remained a one-man operation until 1984 when James R. DeMatteis (Jimmy) came aboard.
“We have always been advocates for small carriers and their success,” Jimmy says. To back up his claim, just go the company’s website at: www.dmtb.com where it states, “Our reputation for paying carriers is second to none”. DMTB has a policy to pay all carriers within one day of receiving the carrier’s freight bill.
Jimmy has served on the board of the Transportation Intermediaries Association (TIA) for the past 6 years “because I believe in our industry and I want to see us do it right.”
Jimmy also serves on the Executive Committee of The Alliance for Safe, Efficient Competitive Truck Transportation (ASECTT) whose main focus is addressing “all the fallacies and flaws in CSA-2010.” He notes the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) decided it was “going to ram this program down the throat of every motor carrier.” As a result ASECTT filed a lawsuit. It resulted in the FMCSA having to reevaluate the way it rated carriers through alerts in its safety management systems. The ratings system has resulted in safe carriers being rated as unsafe. “We want FMCSA to do their job. Their job is to determine the safety fitness of the motor carrier community. Instead they have chosen to deputize the motor carrier, shipper, and broker communities to do their work”
“We want the FMCSA to state they are the party responsible for a carrier’s safety fitness, not the shipper, not the broker,” he states. “Shippers are putting things in contracts based on CSA scores that black list many good small trucking companies. Carriers get put out of business because shippers or brokers won’t work with them as they are deemed unsafe by these scores or alerts.”
The problem comes from the FMCSA basing its program on percentages. “No matter how many bad carriers you get rid of, you are always going to have 35 percent that are going to have alerts. This is very damaging to small carriers. It works well for large carriers and gives them a distinct advantage,” Jimmy states.
Based inNorwalk,IA, DMTB recently moved into new facilities shared with a sister company, Capital City Fruit, with whom it has a 43-year relationship.
Jimmy emphasizes small trucking operations are the backbone of the trucking industry.
“I want to think we at DMTB get it. We treat others with respect, we pay fast and take time to talk to our drivers,” he says. Des Moines Truck Brokers has a policy if a driver walks into its office with bills of lading and the staff has not met that trucker before, everyone stands up, and introduces themselves and shakes his or her hand.
“We in the logistics industry all do important work, but at the end of the day, the person doing the most important work, is that guy or gal out there behind the wheel,” Jimmy states.
For more information about Des Moines Truck Brokers, Inc. go to www.dmtb.com or call 800-247-2514
The hours of service rule changes are not major, but they are confusing. A 
greater focus is needed on prevention of stolen produce loads, and there are discussions of alternatives to using trucks to haul produce, but the alternatives are not that impressive in most cases. These are just a few of the topics addressed at the United Fresh Produce Convention, held May 1-3 at the Dallas (Texas) Conventi0n Center. The session was titled Examining Today’s Transportation Challenges and Alternatives. (To read more about this session see the report published on May 3rd)
Dan Vache’, vice president of the United Fresh Produce Association describes hours of service as a top concern of the produce indutry.
Gary E. York, general manager, C.H. Robinson Co. Worldwide Inc. describes the hours of service rules as “complicated”, specifically noting that twice a week driver’s are not allowed to drive between 1 a.m. and 5 a.m.
“If more drivers were able to operate 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. it would mean less drivers on the road during high traffic hours,” York adds.
A member of the audience points out the hours of service regulations were altered for safety reasons, “but in some cases the changes make it less safe.”
Another audience member asks the panel about compliance of rules and regulations for truckers. York replies that technology is helping to improve compliance and will do more so in the future.
On the topic of stolen loads, Vache’ relates there are no good answers, “but we have to police ourselves.” For example, if a truck shows up with a load of nuts, the receiver or buyer needs to know from where it came.
There also is a lot of contraband crossing the U.S. border from the Southern hemisphere and being distributed throughout the USA and Canada. Vache’ notes the U.S. and Canadian governments are working together to reduce this problem.
With the seasonally high volume of produce, less available refrigeration equipment and rising rates, the topic of alternatives to truck transportation are addressed. Panel members indicate there are certain commodities and routes for transporting produce other than truck, but it is limited.
Alex Crow, national trucking manager, Hellman Perishable Logistics, says, “I don’t think we can replace trucks on certain routes, but we can do some things like with Washington state to Chicago on certain items (like apples, onions and potatoes).
York indicates railroad service has improved, pointing out a rail delivery from Washington state to Chicago can occur within 12 hours of what a single truck driver can deliver. Rails are now delivering loads to the East Coast in six days.
However, York adds that a problem with rail service is the lack of intermodal equipment. There also is the challenge of rails being able to compete with trucks when it comes to backhauls, or return loads. Rails remain an option, are slowly increasing their volume, but York doesn’t see any significant improvements in the next three to five years.
An audience member comments there are transportation problems in moving potatoes out of Idaho. The challenge is getting the equipment to Idaho to make the hauls.
Concerning the CSA safety enforcement systems for trucks that used to be known as SafeStat, Vache’ says in the future the scores will have more meaning as the government is better able to track carriers.
“It’s going to force carriers to be more selective in the drivers they hire,” Vache’s states. “It is going to revolutionize the industry. It will result in liability becoming a bigger issue for carriers. Technology will result in more efficiency to the industry, but more liability.”