Senator Seeks Stricter Rules for Hazmat Drivers
Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) has asked the Department of Homeland Security to come up with stronger guidelines to ensure truckers transporting gasoline and other hazardous materials are fit for the job, the Associated Press reported.
Boxer’s announcement could affect hundreds of companies and thousands of truck drivers and that transport gasoline, chemicals, jet fuel and other hazardous materials nationwide, AP reported.
Her request followed fallout from last week’s crash of a gasoline tanker near San Francisco that collapsed a busy highway interchange, AP said.
The driver in the crash, who suffered burns but was not hurt badly, had cleared an FBI criminal history check and an intelligence review from the Transportation Security Administration to haul gasoline, despite a history of criminal convictions, including felony drug and burglary arrests, AP said.
Following a tour of the accident scene, Transportation Secretary Mary Peters said the federal government would immediately release $2 million in emergency funds and pay for most, if not all, of the expected $35 million price tag to rebuild the interchange, AP said.
Peters estimated the cost of the accident at $4 million to $6 million a day for Bay Area commuters and businesses, meaning the cumulative economic impact could top $300 million, AP reported.
The interchange is not expected to fully reopen until late June.
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