If you're a motor carrier or truck driver, you've probably heard about the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration's (FMCSA) new safety program - Comprehensive Safety Analysis (CSA). Its purpose is to improve road safety by identifying and addressing high-risk truck drivers or motor carriers before they cause accidents.

What to expect from CSA

CSA puts a heavy emphasis on driver performance. Whether you're running under your own authority or leased on to a motor carrier, CSA will have an impact on you.

As a truck driver, you should ensure your truck is in good operating condition and be sure to follow all applicable rules and regulations on and off the road. CSA monitors safety and performance of individual drivers and ties that information back to the motor carrier (or to your own record if you have your own authority.) Additionally motor carriers can request access to your inspection and crash data through the Pre-Employment Screening Program before they hire you.

How CSA works

CSA performs three main functions:

• Measurement - CSA measures safety performance of drivers via the new Safety Measurement System (SMS) and uses inspection and crash results to identify truck drivers whose driving behaviors could lead to crashes. SMS evaluates a driver’s previous 24 months of driving data in seven Behavior Analysis and Safety Improvement Categories (BASICs) and calculates a score. This score is used to evaluate the risk of drivers. The BASICs are:
  • Unsafe Driving
  • Hours-of-Service Compliance
  • Driver Fitness
  • Controlled Substances/Alcohol
  • Vehicle Maintenance
  • Hazardous Materials Compliance
  • Crash Indicator
• Evaluation - CSA helps FMCSA and its enforcement partners identify and attempt to correct risky behavior by contacting motor carriers and drivers when it identifies a pattern of unsafe behavior.
• Intervention - CSA covers a wide variety of safety issues and allows for intervention in an attempt to improve overall driving safety and reduce crashes for truckers. Based on the nature and severity of CSA violations, different levels of intervention may be used.

More information

For more information on the CSA guidelines and enforcement, visit the CSA web site.