In summary, this paper discusses several key issues pertaining to FMCSA’s recently deployed regulatory program, CSA, and its perceived impacts on CMV drivers. Additionally, CSA-triggered changes that drivers have experienced in their workplace and on the road have been noted, as well as the consequent driver attitudes and opinions surrounding those changes. CSA remains a controversial topic among truck drivers, receiving almost perfectly divided support. And, while drivers who took an active interest in CSA and expressed overt approval or disapproval knew more about the program than those who had not yet formulated opinions, no group of drivers could be described as experts on the topic. Based on the general (lack of) understanding of 14 principal elements of the regulatory program, CSA is, in fact, relatively poorly understood by drivers. Even from a qualitative perspective, conversations with drivers who completed the CSA survey at MATS revealed that, in the minds of some drivers, CSA is a symbolic word synonymous with all federal regulations. For example, many drivers confused CSA with the recent (at the time of this writing) Hours-of-Service (HOS) NPRM. Recommendations are provided for increasing awareness and debunking persistent myths surrounding the program, although the passage of time is a necessary component for these processes to occur. Acceptance is predicted to gradually improve as CSA matures and the status quo shifts to accommodate the new way of complying with FMCSA regulations. (Author/publisher) To receive a copy of this report please visit: http://www.atri-online.org/
Abstract