Wykle: FHWA to Maintain Ties

The new, stern attitude toward trucking safety should not destroy the close ties that the industry and government have developed over the past four years, according to the top man at the Federal Highway Administration.

Kenneth Wykle said he supports promoting a good relationship to reduce the number of truck-related fatalities. However, he noted that the Office of Motor Carrier and Highway Safety was increasing compliance reviews to help eliminate the perception of a too-friendly association with trucking.

“We will continue to work with industry,” Wykle said at the American Trucking Associations Foundation’s annual spring meeting. “We have to. We can’t do it alone, nor can the states.

“We need to get the right balance between enforcement and working with industry on education and training.”

Some of the 125 participants heard other views from a panel discussing “The Politics of Transportation: Representing the Public Interest.” Also occupying the front table were Fred Hansen, a former deputy administrator at the Environmental Protection Agency; Marthe Kent, a director at the Occupational Safety and Health Administration; and Ken Krupsky, a former official with the Treasury Department.

“Former Associate Administrator George Reagle started a process of going toward a performance-based review to identify high-risk carriers, identify their weaknesses and work with them on education to get them to comply,” said Wykle, who moderated a discussion panel at the conference, which was held from April 29 to May 1.

With 450,000 motor carriers in the United States and only 650 federal employees devoted to truck safety, “I think that’s the right way to go,” he said.

Wykle said the problem was that inspectors spent too much time on working with the industry instead of conducting compliance reviews. An audit by the Department of Transportation’s inspector general found that such inspections declined by 30% between 1995 and 1998 (3-8, p. 1).

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