June 4-6 is International Roadcheck

It’s just three days away. Are you ready? We’ll do a quick review of what this blitz involves, and share some keys to improving your results.

International Roadcheck: a summary

This year’s International Roadcheck will take place on June 4-6, 2019, and focus on steering and suspension systems.

Over 72 hours, commercial motor vehicle inspectors in jurisdictions throughout North America — Canada, Mexico, and the U.S. — will conduct inspections on commercial motor vehicles and drivers. Most who have pulled aside for inspection will undergo the full, 37-point North American Standard Level I Inspection.

During Roadcheck, inspectors will pull aside 17 trucks and buses every minute. CVSA-certified inspectors will continually conduct compliance, enforcement, and educational initiatives targeted at various elements of motor carrier, vehicle, and driver safety.

Drivers themselves will also be inspected for fatigue, sickness, seatbelt usage, and alcohol/drug impairment. They will be asked for:

Driver’s license
Medical Examiner’s Certificate and Skill Performance Evaluation Certificate (if applicable)
Driver’s record of duty status and vehicle inspection report(s) (if applicable)

Here are some documents to help guide you through the 2019 International Roadcheck:

Get Your 2019 International Roadcheck Flyer

Download a Copy of the CVSA Cheat Sheet

Learn How Infinit-I Workforce Solutions Make Safety Documentation Easy

The first vital key is to communicate readiness.

Remind your driving fleet to be aware that during these roadchecks, they’re very likely to get pulled over. It’s your responsibility to keep them aware and alert to issues pertaining to inspections.

If you do online training, this is a great opportunity to send out an assignment to make sure all your drivers are pre-tripping properly so they don’t get a violation when they get inspected on the road. The assignment both reminds them of what’s ahead and gets them ready for it.

International Roadcheck might be the biggest targeted enforcement program on commercial motor vehicles in the world. “However,” said CVSA President Chief Jay Thompson:

aside from the increased inspections, we are not doing anything differently than any other day. The inspections performed during International Roadcheck are the same inspections that are conducted the day before International Roadcheck starts and the day after it concludes, as well as any other day of the year.

What are the other implications of this?

Prepare so you don’t have to prepare.

Of course, you have to prepare. But if you pass inspections with flying colors on a consistent basis, this will be part of your secret: ever-ready excellence.

During the American Revolutionary War, a group of civilian soldiers were trained to be ready and out their front doors in a moment’s notice. They were called (this is probably bringing back high school history class) Minute Men. They knew that the best way to prepare for the call of duty was to not have to do anything special to prepare because they were prepared in the first place.

Every day, 365 days a year, is your chance to prepare for International Roadcheck and other inspections throughout the year. Why? Because inspections help keep the roads safer and help make you a better company, accountable to high standards. Stay accountable to the highest standards — your own — be ever-ready for a 37-point inspection and you won’t be sweating inspection weeks.

Online training allows you to keep your drivers on a continual rota of short but powerful training modules. It keeps training frequent and consistent.

You also need to:

Align training with the latest regulatory developments.

Last year, in 2018, nearly a quarter of all inspected trucks were placed out of service because of Roadcheck. That’s a heck of a lot of trucks.

67,502 vehicles were inspected at random. Out of that number, 11,897 trucks and 2,664 drivers were placed out of service. That’s 21% of all trucks in 2018 placed out of service!

Why?

The 2018 Roadcheck focused on hours of service regulation compliance, backing up the ELD compliance mandate that had gone into effect in December of the previous year. And 43% of the out-of-service conditions for drivers were related to hours of service.

This is a good reminder that when new regulations go into effect, you should always be prepared to see them reflected in major forthcoming inspections.

We see the official launch of a new regulation only about every other year or so. However, new rules are constantly being proposed as new data is collected and new technology develops. DOT and FMSCA are constantly rethinking on how to optimize road rules to optimize safety.

So you have to stay flexible and able to change driver behavior to reflect the changes.

You will receive enough advance notice in order to be prepared for new regulations that require extra work to prepare (such as purchasing and implementing ELD systems in 2017-2018). And dates for inspections will be announced publicly in plenty of time. But don’t delay when you hear news about a new safety regulation or emphasis. It’s a good bet that an inspection team will soon have that item at the top of their checklist.

Finally:

Learn from previous years’ mistakes.

Each year focuses on a different safety system, but an already-compliant fleet will have an easier time remaining compliant. In 2018, 43% of drivers failed to comply with new regulations. Learn from this. Every safety system is critical. Let your 37-point inspection for next year start now.

International Roadcheck will always examine these critical safety items:

Steering
Suspension
Brakes
Tires, wheels, rims, and hubs
Cargo securement
Coupling devices
Exhaust and fuel systems
Lights
Windshield wipers

In a sense, an annual Roadcheck is actually perennial. The same critical items crop up year after year. To the ever-ready, there’s nothing to panic over, because you’re putting superior drivers and well-maintained trucks on the road, 24/7.

Infinit-I Workforce Solutions exists to build and empower great trucking fleets through online training. Our clients’ results are reflected in safer driving records, better insurance rates, overall cost management, and more. Read client testimonials or request a free demo today.