Security and Hazardous Materials Requirements

The hazardous materials transportation industry is diverse. The diversity and sensitivity of security policies and practices make this rulemaking and other security-based rulemakings particularly challenging. FMCSA and RSPA should evaluate the merits of any initiative in a comprehensive, not an isolated, fashion. In the meantime, IME recommends that RSPA and FMCSA advance docket HM-232A in the following manner with regard to commercial Class 1 materials. ¿Prenotification or armed escorts should not be required except under very special circumstances. ¿The ability to communicate with truck drivers and monitor shipments should be required. Except for overnight shipments, the type of communication should not be specified. Overnight shipments should be equipped with a system similar to the GPS-based communication systems in operation today. ¿Additional regulations on anti-theft devices are not needed. DOT should require attendance of all vehicles that display, or should display, a Class 1 placard when not in a safe haven or a secure area on the property of a shipper, carrier, or consignee. ¿NFPA 498 standards, not DOD standards, should be adopted by reference for safe havens and secure areas on the property of shippers, carriers, and consignees.

Filed on regulations.gov — full text not in the inline record.