Senior Reporter
CVSA Postpones Roadcheck Due to Coronavirus Crisis
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This year’s International Roadcheck, originally set for May 5-7, has been postponed due to coronavirus concerns. A rescheduled date will be announced later, the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance said in a March 25 statement.
However, Operation Safe Driver Week still is scheduled for July 12-18, and Brake Safety Week still is set for Aug. 23-29, CVSA said.
“The alliance will monitor the status of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and appropriately select the new dates when it’s safe and reasonable to do so,” CVSA said. “Once the rescheduled dates have been selected, CVSA will notify the commercial motor vehicle enforcement community, the motor carrier industry, the press and the public.”
CVSA has decided to postpone International Roadcheck to later in the year. The Alliance will monitor the status of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and appropriately select the new dates when it’s safe and reasonable to do so. https://t.co/6PB3Zwc7W5 pic.twitter.com/2lLSr9tays — CVSA (@CVSA) March 25, 2020
John Samis, a sergeant with the Delaware State Police and CVSA president, said, “As we urgently respond to this time-sensitive crisis, we must remain diligent and committed to ensuring that the commercial motor vehicles and drivers providing essential goods and services to our communities are following motor carrier safety regulations. Safety doesn’t take a break. It is always our top priority.”
International Roadcheck has run on schedule for the past 32 years. So its postponement was “thoroughly and thoughtfully discussed” before CVSA made the decision, Samis said.
“This experience is unprecedented in our modern society, and we need to do all that we can to help stop the spread of this global pandemic,” he added.
CVSA said it will closely monitor the coronavirus outbreak, follow guidance from public health expert leadership, and promptly notify its membership and industry stakeholders of the rescheduled Roadcheck dates and the status of future scheduled enforcement campaigns.
Plans called for this year’s 72-hour, stepped-up Roadcheck enforcement effort to focus on the category of driver requirements.
Of the 3.36 million inspections conducted last year, 944,794 were cited in the driver requirements category, according to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s fiscal 2019 data. A total of 195,545 of those driver violations were for out-of-service conditions, CVSA said.
Some of the common driver requirement violations have included failure to show proof of medical qualifications, insurance and vehicle registration, detected drug or alcohol use, failure to wear a seat belt and presenting an inspector a false record-of-duty status.
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