Though we spoke about this topic a little bit before, we here at American Auto Shipping felt it deserved its own place in the news archives, because it’s just that good of a story.
A new bill, signed into law last Thursday, expanded the number of commercial trucks in the state of Washington that can actually be tracked for safety violations. While that statement may not mean much at the moment, we’re going to break that down and analyze it, so you know exactly what’s going on.
What that means is that the new law will include garbage trucks, interstate charter buses, as well as vehicles that have been registered by the Utilities and Transportation Commission. The old law, which was first passed in 2007, referenced only tracking interstate trucks; the new one, passed last Thursday, expands to include all of the above.
The bill, which was sponsored by Representative Ruth Kagi of Shoreline, was first introduced and examined after the deaths of two university scientists in 2005 after an accident involving a logging truck, and the new law also allows the State Patrol to stop trucks from operating until safety violations are taken care of.
This law is also a kick in the pants for automobile carriers, who now have to pass rigorous safety inspections before they are allowed to hit the road, and can be shut down at any time for lack of safety features.
So, if an auto carrier is caught not securing their freight properly, they could possibly be shut down until all their cargo is properly secured. Also, if a carrier’s hydraulic lift system is malfunctioning slightly, they could be denied the opportunity to drive until it is repaired.
This could theoretically spell trouble for you, the customer, who could possibly be looking at longer wait times to receive your vehicle, especially if your car was assigned to a trucking company that is a bit …lax… about safety. However, you can sleep easier at night knowing that all the companies that advertise with us care deeply about safety as well as customer service, so they make sure that their trucking partners are up to speed with all the latest safety rules and regulations.
This law ultimately does more good than harm, though, because it doesn’t just affect the auto transport industry or the interstate commercial trucking industry; these regulations go down to the local level, with garbage trucks and utility vehicles under the microscope as well.
This will ultimately make trucks much safer, and commerce would be adversely effected if the safety protocols weren’t followed by the truck drivers, so you can rest assured that everyone will be adhering to these strict safety standards.
Since 2007 Dave has written all the content and blogs for American Auto Shipping and during this time added the duties of customer support and transport logistics.
He currently resides in Washington with his three kids and their mom and cat. A fan of Marvel movies and good stories, when not shipping cars Dave can be found working on his novel, enjoying a good book or playing some tournament HALO.
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