Transportation 19

The University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute study of the CSA enforcement system finds that while most elements are effective, improvements are still needed. The UM Transportation Research Institute prepared an in-depth study of the 30-month field test of CSA.  The Institute found that the new system worked better than the old SafeStat system, improved carrier behavior and is more effective, as it reached more carriers.

However, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration ("FMCSA") needs to make change in two of the seven Behavior Analysis and Safety Improvement Categories ("BASICs").  according to the report, both the Cargo-Related and the Driver Fitness BASICs do not have as strong of a correlation to crash risk as the other BASICs. The study notes that the agency has a study under way that could lead to improvements.

The Institute's report also indicated that there is a delay between measureable safety performance improvement after investigations, and that carriers with serious safety problems showed improvement rates similar to those in the control group.

The FMCSA expects to address these issues in its upcoming proposal to establish safety fitness determinations based on CSA data, rather than on Compliance Reviews. The proposal is scheduled to be published in February.