WASHINGTON — A long-standing quest for better data on how delays experienced by truck drivers waiting to load and unload affects safety and lost pay will get a fresh start by federal regulators.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration released on Wednesday the parameters of a new data collection it hopes will close an information gap preventing regulators from fully understanding the effects of truck driver detention time.
“This research study will collect data on commercial motor vehicle driver detention time representative of the major segments of the motor carrier industry, analyze that data to determine the frequency and severity of detention time, and assess the utility of existing intelligent transportation systems solutions to measure detention time,” according to an Information Collection Request (ICR) FMCSA plans to submit to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for approval.
The ICR points out that while a 2014 FMCSA study provided “valuable insights” on the effect of detention time on carrier and driver safety, it was limited, among other things, by a small sample size and the inability to separate legitimate time drivers spent loading and unloading from excess wait times.
“Therefore, FMCSA needs additional data from a broader sample of carriers to understand the safety and operational impact of detention time, to better understand why detention time occurs, and to identify potential mitigation strategies the industry may use to reduce detention time while improving operational efficiencies and safety,” the ICR notes.
To close the information gap, FMCSA’s study will use data collected from electronic logging devices, transportation management systems, vehicle telematic systems, safety records and from questions using carrier dispatching systems.
“The TMS, ELD, telematics, and safety data are already collected by carriers,” the ICR states. “The only additional data that will be collected will be the answers to questions submitted through the carriers’ dispatching systems. This information will allow FMCSA to identify the severity and frequency of detention time, the factors that contribute to detention time, and the administrative, operational, and safety outcomes of detention time.”
The agency wants to recruit approximately 80 carriers and 2,500 drivers to participate in the 12-month study. Most of the data is to be collected from clients of SpeedGauge, a San Francisco-based telematics company that generates data used by insurance companies to help make underwriting decisions for commercial carriers. FMCSA said it will also consider data from individual carriers that want to participate.
FMCSA outlined three primary objectives for the data collection:
- Assess the frequency and severity of driver detention time using data that represents the major segments of the motor carrier industry.
- Assess the utility of existing intelligent transportation systems solutions to measure detention time.
- Prepare a final report that summarizes the findings, answers the research questions and offers strategies to reduce detention time.
“Completing these research objectives will provide insight into any relationship between driver detention time and CMV safety,” FMCSA stated.
“Additionally, the findings from this study can contribute to a more complete understanding of these issues and facilitate private sector decisions that lead to reductions in detention time and improvements in safety and supply chain efficiency.”
FMCSA is giving the public 60 days to comment on the ICR before submitting it to OMB.
Getting a better understanding of the effects of driver detention time on safety and driver pay has been a priority of regulators and lawmakers over the last five years.
Predicted Crash Rates for Changes in Average Dwell Time
Source: DOT OIG 2018 report
A 2018 analysis by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Office of Inspector General estimated that a 15-minute increase in average dwell time (the total time spent by a truck at a facility) increases the average expected crash rate by 6.2% – the theory being, drivers paid by the mile or by the load have an incentive to make up lost time by speeding (see chart).
The report also estimated that detention reduces annual earnings by $1.1 billion to $1.3 billion for drivers in the truckload sector.
In 2020, Democratic lawmakers attempted to include in a highway reauthorization bill not only a detention time study but a follow-on rulemaking to establish limits on the amount of time a driver could be detained by a shipper or receiver before being required to be compensated for lost time. The provision did not make it into the final reauthorization passed in 2021.
koolbald
First and foremost this is a minor issue in the trucking industry… you have to put a program in place for these brokers because they are robbing trucks, O/O , blind just because they can …just like when we show up for a load and they only pay a non used truck 150-200 well that truck my not be able to find another load and they non used pay isnt enough for that truck fuel and the drivers time…until these brokers start being penalized for their actions in the industry we will forever have ongoing issues…so a survey will help nothing…need to strike thats all
Regina R Olivas
Some of the issues as a company driver is the company keeping the detention pay, and telling the drivers “we don’t pay detention or the shipping and receiving companies don’t pay detention”. I was told by my old company that Publix doesn’t pay detention and I’ve sat for anywhere between 4-12 hrs waiting to get unloaded. So I asked Publix one day if they pay detention and they responded yes.
Another issue I these new drivers not logging properly when at a dock. So if their clock is off duty how is it being properly monitored on how long a driver is actually being detained at the dock?
I hear them say I’m saving my clock or I get a reset.
F that clock cuz 14 hrs runs no matter what. And if the government is using the info across the board based on our dot clocks then they aren’t going to get all the correct info. Because so many companies tell drivers to clock a certain way and they do it.
The government needs to get on all the companies that don’t pay breakdown as well as detention, Maybe this would hold them more responsible on fixing the damn trucks properly and avoid mechanical failure accidents.
Detention, Layover, and Breakdown pay are a big issue I see since I’ve been driving.
And the brokers don’t care about the drivers they are all about themselves. They need to be regulated.
Melinda S Lindsey
Well the study will not be complete, because many drivers go to off duty and sit and wait on the load. The trucking companies don’t or won’t pay detention. They find different reasons to cheat drivers out of that pay. The companies may still collect money for sitting, the drivers 9 out 10 times gets zero $0. Why do drivers have to give their time to the trucking company or the shipping and receiving companies and not be paid? My husband and I ran team, and waiting on either end was a big f#ing mess. We were lease purchase. Not one time with Western Express did we get paid for sitting, sometimes the whole weekend. Zero pay, but we still had a truck payment, insurance, fuel ect.
Ask me trucking needs to control the company more, drivers need someone who has their back. Trucking company cheat drivers in all pay! Never thought I would say it but trucking needs a Union! We get sick of having to hire big lawyers to take the money most drivers should have been paid.
None of the companies will show how they cheat drivers. That’s a joke!
Nathaniel Stevenson
Here’s a recent example of how drivers are abused by detention pay rules. I’m an Owner Operator, I picked up a load for TQL in Indianapolis, Indiana going to Sam’s Club in Kansas City, Kansas. And I must say that TQL has one of the worst detention policies that I have ever seen, first 3 hours are free. With that said, I arrived at receiver at just before 10:00am for a 10 o’clock appointment. Checked in parked to be called to be off loaded. I was called and given a dock location almost immediately. Conveniently I was finally unloaded just after 13:00 hours. Approximately 15 minutes after the three hour free wait time. So there was no detention time for wasting three hours. Needless to say that I have not and will not pull any more loads for TQL in which I told them that I would not. Brokering agencies as well as shippers and receivers are all ok with screwing over drivers in this fashion. Apparently they were aware that I needed to be released at the three hour mark in order to avoid paying any detention. It’s absolutely shameful!
Lu
I have been driving for 23 years and I have always had issues with having to give a customer 2 to 3 hours before they will pay detention. Take it a step further, as an owner, I don’t like that a broker does not give detention at the time of the detention. In many cases, the company has to wait for the broker to approve the detention, which isn’t instant and can sometimes take weeks to get it approved. I as the driver had to wait in real time for a customer who scheduled an appointment to take 3 to 4 hours to unload me. Often times, these detentions cost the company a next load which means lost money. When will this government actually start caring about the hard working drivers out here sacrificing it all to keep this country moving? And then make it illegal for us to strike for better conditions!?!?!? It’s like they are saying it’s ok to screw the little guy
Theodore W Weston
This has been a Sore Spot for the 47yrs I’ve been a driver. Grocery Warehouses, Ports, Steel Mills, you name it in the Trucking Industry you’ll find that All of them hold you at bay till they feel like loading or unloading your truck.
Fair charge would be 100.00 per hr. 50.00 hr for the driver 50.00hr for the company. Also those who Expect you to break down Their frieght should be Charged Double.
Donald Trump
Maybe they should just let drivers do whatever they want and watch the accidents decrease because instead ok f following some nonsensical arbitrary number they will just drive when they feel good and stop when they need rest. These government agencies are so useless
E
I have often complained about having to wait 2 hours before collecting delay pay, and the response is always the same; “Thats just how the industry is.” To which I always reply “How about setting the industry standard instead of following it.” The 2 hour wait for delay pay is an agreement between shippers and receivers; the drivers weren’t part of the negotiations. That being said, whenever I’ve driven for a company that pays an hourly rate for all on duty time, miraculously there is very little load/unload time because its costing them to detain us.
So what’s the solution? Pay drivers for every second their clock is ticking. And while you’re at it, how about removing the exemption from over time pay? Everything after 40 hours should be Over Time for EVERY employee. We have to work nights, weekends, holidays, and sacrifice time at home with our families to keep the nations economy running…the least you could do is allow us to make money doing it.