WASHINGTON, (July 5, 2004) — The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) will implement a new federal safety permit program for carriers hauling hazardous materials.

The rule — which affects interstate carriers as well as foreign carriers from Canada and Mexico — is effective July 30, with regulatory compliance beginning January 1, 2005.

To be approved for the hazmat safety permit, hazmat carriers hauling radioactive material, explosives, toxic-by-inhalation materials, or liquid methane and natural gas, must have a “satisfactory” safety rating, without any violations the FMCSA has deemed to be “acute” or “severe.” A carrier must have a sufficient security program in place, and be registered with the Department of Transportation’s Research and Special Programs Administration (RSPA).

The agency also proposed issuing a temporary safety permit, valid for up to 270 days, to motor carriers that do not yet have a safety rating but certifies it has a satisfactory security program. However, FMCSA would not issue a temporary safety permit to a carrier that has a crash rate or a total out-of-service rate in the top 30 per cent of the national average.

Also part of the rule, a written route plan and “communications” plan would be required for radioactive materials. The driver must have available in his cab the telephone number of the dispatcher or manager knowledgeable of the route of the vehicle.

FMCSA is also requiring carriers to develop a record of communications that allows for the tracking of the shipment — either by using electronic and satellite tracking devices, or regular telephone calls between the driver and carrier at least once every two hours and any time there is a deviation from the written route plan. The record must be kept for at least six months.

Moreover, shipments containing Class 7 radioactive materials are required to undergo a pre-trip inspection performed by a federal, state, or local inspectors, or a government-approved contractor.

Trucking officials quickly criticized parts of the rule — noting it duplicates existing hazmat regulatory programs.

FMCSA has not proposed to charge a fee for applying for a safety permit, but stated that it may consider it in the future, especially if the safety permit program is expanded to apply to motor carriers of additional types and quantities of hazardous materials.