[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 190 (Monday, October 1, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 49996-49998]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-24433]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
Agency Information Collection Activities Under OMB Review: OMB
Control No. 2126-NEW (Graduated Commercial Driver's License (CDL)
Survey)
AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), DOT.
ACTION: Notice; request for comments.
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SUMMARY: The FMCSA announces that the Information Collection Request
(ICR) described in this notice is being sent to the Office of
Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval. The FMCSA is
requesting OMB's approval for a new information collection as described
below. The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) published a Federal
Register notice offering a 60-day comment period on this information
[[Page 49997]]
collection on July 19, 1999 (64 FR 38699). At that time, the Office of
Motor Carrier Safety was a part of the Federal Highway Administration
(FHWA). Rulemaking, enforcement, and other activities of that former
office are now being continued by the FMCSA. The comments that were
received are addressed below. We are required to send ICRs to OMB under
the Paperwork Reduction Act.
DATES: Please submit comments by October 31, 2001.
ADDRESSES: Send comments to the Office of Information and Regulatory
Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, 725 Seventeenth Street NW.,
Washington, DC 20503, Attention: DOT Desk Officer. We particularly
request your comments on whether the collection of information is
necessary for the FMCSA to meet its goal of reducing truck crashes,
including whether the information is useful to this goal; the accuracy
of the estimate of the burden of the information collection; ways to
enhance the quality, utility and clarity of the information collected;
and ways to minimize the burden of the collection of information on
respondents, including the use of automated collection techniques or
other forms of information technology. OMB wants to receive comments
within 30 days of publication of this notice in order to act on the ICR
quickly.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Robert Redmond (202) 366-9579,
Office of Safety Programs, State Programs Division (MC-ESS), Federal
Motor Carrier Safety Administration, 400 Seventh Street, SW.,
Washington, DC 20590. Office hours are from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., e.t.,
Monday through Friday, except Federal holidays.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Title: Graduated Commercial Driver's License (CDL) Survey.
Background: The House Conference on the FY 1996 Department of
Transportation and Related Agencies Appropriation Act (Public Law 104-
50, H. Rep. 104-286) directed the FHWA to contract with the
Transportation Research Institute (TRI) of the American Trucking
Associations Foundation, Inc. to perform applied research to address a
number of highway safety issues, such as: driver fatigue and alertness;
the application of emerging technologies to ensure safety, productivity
and regulatory compliance; and commercial driving licensing, training
and education. The amount allocated was to be not less than $4 million.
A survey of industry opinion pertaining to a graduated CDL is one of
these projects under the congressionally mandated cooperative agreement
with the TRI.
Section 4019 of the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century
(Public Law 105-178) directed the Secretary of Transportation to
identify the benefits and costs of a graduated CDL system as part of a
review of the current CDL testing procedures and to identify methods to
improve the testing and licensing standards. The trucking industry
alone projects a need for 300,000 new and replacement drivers every
year until the turn of the century. In addition to those newly entering
the truck-driving field, others are constantly transitioning from one
type of commercial motor vehicle operation to another. For example,
moving from straight trucks to combinations, from tractor-semis to
doubles or even triples, from hauling general commodities to motor
vehicles or even hazardous materials, moving from school buses to
transit buses or motor coaches, or moving back and forth between
various trucks and buses.
A graduated or provisional CDL program might go beyond today's CDL
requirements to provide for safer introduction of new drivers into the
industry and assure the measured progression of drivers, by proper
training and supervision, into more complex driving jobs.
Before considering the recommendation and development of a
provisional CDL program, it is necessary to better identify the need
for and quantify the potential benefits and costs of such a program.
TRI, in cooperation with representatives of all segments of the truck
and bus industries, will survey representatives of the motor carrier
(truck and bus) industry, drivers, driver training schools, insurance
companies, and driver licensing and law enforcement agencies, using
approximately 15 short response questions with the ability to add
narrative comments, about the need for, benefits of, potential
acceptance of, institutional barriers to and practicality of a
graduated commercial driver licensing system and the likely
improvements in highway safety, employment opportunities and
transportation efficiency. The questions for the written survey will be
based on information gathered during previously conducted focus group
sessions and will include the importance of certain elements in a
graduated driver licensing program such as training, driving record,
driving experience, age, testing and restrictions.
Over the past two years the survey questionnaire was drafted and
received extensive review and comments by FMCSA staff and the Technical
Review Committee that are working on this study. This review/comments/
revision process was conducted several times until a questionnaire was
developed that would accomplish the data collection goals of this
study.
The study data will be compiled and statistically evaluated. The
results of the evaluation and conclusions will be presented in a final
report that will address the potential benefits, costs and feasibility
of implementing a graduated or provisional CDL program. The results
will be used by the FHWA in evaluating the potential for pilot testing
the graduated CDL concept and developing a rulemaking based on the
results of the pilot study.
Comments Received: The comments that were received in response to
the July 19, 1999, Federal Register notice are addressed as follows:
Margaret O'Donnell: This comment was a request to participate in
the survey and was not pertinent to the issue of whether or not there
was a need to conduct the survey. Georgia Motor Trucking Association:
This comment was in favor of conducting the survey as a way to gauge
industry interest in and potential acceptance of a Graduated CDL.
Bill Wetherald: This comment asked what the minimum age for a CDL
would be under the Graduated CDL scenario and expressed concern over
younger drivers. It did not specifically address the need for a survey.
Association of Publicly Funded Truck Driving Schools: This comment
addressed the Association's stand on younger drivers and was not
pertinent to the issue of whether or not a survey was needed.
Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety: The Advocates object to this
information collection for the following reasons: 1) Because the survey
is being administered by TRI; 2) because they feel FMCSA has prejudiced
the outcome by mentioning a lower age limit for a CDL in the Federal
Register Notice; and, 3) because they believe highway safety groups
should be included in the survey population. Each of these concerns
will be addressed individually.
The Advocates claim that FMCSA was not legislatively directed to
award the graduated CDL study to TRI. In fact, FMCSA was
Congressionally directed during FY' 96 to contract with TRI to perform
applied research for an amount not less than $4 million to address
safety issues of concern such as driver fatigue and alertness; the
application of emerging technologies to ensure safety; productivity and
regulatory compliance; licensing; and commercial driver
[[Page 49998]]
training and education. The Graduated CDL survey fulfills part of this
mandate.
The Advocates claim that FMCSA has prejudiced the outcome of the
survey by mentioning lowering the age for a commercial drivers license
in the Federal Register notice. The survey was designed to eliminate
any bias as to the age when drivers should be granted a commercial
drivers license. The survey asks two questions about age; one being the
minimum age at which an applicant should be eligible to receive a
graduated CDL and the second being the minimum age at which the holder
of a graduated CDL should be eligible to graduate to an unrestricted
CDL. Respondents are asked to fill in a blank with the age for both
questions. The survey design has been carefully reviewed by the FMCSA
Contracting Officer's Technical Representative (COTR) and the Technical
Review Committee (TRC) for the study to ensure that there are no
conflicts of interest concerning any of the survey questions, including
those about age. Both the COTR and the TRC will be closely involved in
the data analysis and final report to further insure no conflict of
interest regarding any of the factors involved in a Graduated CDL.
Lastly, the Advocates object to the fact that no public safety
groups are included in the survey population. In fact, Advocates is one
of five public safety groups that are to be included in the survey
population.
E. Robert Barr: This comment addresses implementation of a
Graduated CDL with regards to younger drivers and their training. It
does not specifically address the need to conduct the survey and
therefore is not pertinent to this submittal.
Driver Training & Development Alliance: This comment is in support
of conducting a survey on the concept of a Graduated CDL as a first
step in the process of determining the viability of such a system.
Tri-Bell Industries: This comment is in favor of a Graduated CDL
program for reasons of supplying the industry with better-trained
drivers. However, it does not specifically address whether or not a
survey should be conducted, and therefore is not pertinent to this
information collection.
International Brotherhood of Teamsters: The IBT objects to the
conduct of the survey because they have not been given the opportunity
to review the survey instrument or survey plan. The intent of this
first notice was simply to ask whether or not an information collection
should take place. Once a survey package is submitted to OMB, notice
will be published giving IBT an opportunity to comment on the survey
plan and instrument.
American Automobile Association: This comment supports conduct of
the Graduated CDL survey as a ``first step in exploring the benefits of
a graduated CDL system as a highway safety measure.''
Insurance Institute For Highway Safety: This comment requests that
additional parties be added to the survey population--namely nonprofit
safety groups and knowledgeable university researchers. The survey plan
for the Graduated CDL survey does in fact include the following highway
safety groups in its survey population: AAA; Insurance Institute for
Highway Safety; National Safety Council; Advocates for Highway and Auto
Safety; and Citizens for Reliable and Safe Highways. This survey is
intended to gauge the need for, and potential acceptance of, a
Graduated CDL by the motor carrier industry. The survey population has
been expanded to include those who would be directly affected by a
Graduated CDL--law enforcement, licensing agencies, driver training
schools, insurance companies and associations representing highway
safety concerns. However, since the intent of the survey is expressly
stated for the motor carrier industry and safety-related groups, we do
not believe, as the Insurance Institute does, that ``knowledgeable
university researchers'' should also be included in the survey
population.
At such time as the FMCSA determines that designing a pilot test of
a Graduated CDL scenario is needed, such notice will be appropriate for
university researchers to comment on the design of that study.
California Department of Motor Vehicles: This comment supports a
survey to ``determine the need and feasibility of a graduated
commercial driver license (CDL).''
Respondents: The respondents to the planned survey will include
approximately 2,000 selected representatives of the motor carrier
(truck and bus) industry, drivers, driver training schools, insurance
companies, and driver licensing and law enforcement agencies.
Average Burden Per Response: The estimated average burden per
response is 15 minutes. This includes the time needed for reading the
survey instructions, searching existing data sources, completing the
survey instrument and returning the information by mail or transmission
by facsimile.
Estimated Total Annual Burden: The estimated total annual burden is
500 hours.
Frequency: The survey will be conducted once.
Authority: The Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995; 44 U.S.C.
Chapter 35, as amended; and 49 CFR 1.73.
Issued on: September 25, 2001.
Stephen E. Barber,
Associate Administrator for Enforcement and Program Delivery.
[FR Doc. 01-24433 Filed 9-28-01; 8:45 am]
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