Georgia Truck Accident Lawyers Blog

There's a system that will help you to determine which motorcoach company may be the safety for you to travel with. This system is a part of the Compliance, Safety, Accountability (CSA) Operational Model and it called the Safety Measurement System (SMS), according to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.

This system looks into the traveling safety performance of carriers around the county in an attempt to locate dangerous fleets that the Administration feels need an intervention. These interventions are used to help find the problems that a driver or a carrier may have in the ability to prevent commercial bus accidents in Georgia and elsewhere. The program doesn't stop there. It will continue to monitor companies to determine where problems are improving or getting worse. The new program is a replacement for the SafeStat system.

Our Atlanta trucking accident lawyers understand how important it is for the FMCSA to conduct an intervention with companies that may have a less than perfect record. With the governing of the FMCSA, motorcoach companies are more likely to provide safe modes of transportation. The FMCSA receives a bulk of the safety information from various roadside inspections. The Administration also obtains information regarding State-reported crashes and safety-based violations.

Performance is quantified through these Behavior Analysis and Safety Improvement Categories (BASICs):

-Hours-of-Service/Fatigued Driving: This violation includes drivers of commercial motor vehicles who have been cited for driving while fatigued, sick or in non-compliance with the HOS regulations. This citation also includes violations regarding HOS logbooks and other forms of fatigued driver management.

-Unsafe Driving: This violation occurs when a driver operates a commercial vehicle in a careless or dangerous manner. These violations include recklessness, speeding, inattention, improper lane change, etc.

-Controlled Substances/Alcohol. This violation is issued when a driver is operating a company vehicle while under the influence of illegal drugs, alcohol or while misusing over-the-counter or prescription medications.

-Driver Fitness: This violation is issued when a driver is unfit to operate a commercial vehicle. This can result because of medical qualifications, lack of experience of inadequate training. All drivers must be properly trained and licensed.

-Cargo-Related: A company can receive a violation under this category if it neglected to prevent loads from shifting, spilling or dropping.

-Vehicle Maintenance: This is a violation for failing to properly maintain commercial vehicles. This includes lights, brakes, etc.

-Crash Indicator: This violation will be received when a company experiences frequent accidents. This violation includes both the frequency and the severity of all recorded accidents.

If a company is cited with several of these violations, then the FMCSA will step in and conduct an intervention to ensure that the problems are resolved. All of these factors play a role in your safety and should not be taken lightly. All consumers are urged to check the stats and ratings of a company before taking a trip.