NAFB – “DOT Issues Report on Mexican Truck Safety”

NAFB – “DOT Issues Report on Mexican Truck Safety”

Posted on Sep 4, 2009 in Cross Border Program by PMC Comments Off

AMERICAN FARM BUREAU FEDERATION
A new report from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Inspector General affirms that Mexican trucks are as safe as U.S. vehicles and Mexican truck drivers have better safety records than their U.S. counterparts. The report, a – Follow-Up Audit on the Implementation of the North American Free Trade Agreement’s Cross-Border Trucking Provisions — notes that in FY 2008, more than 220-thousand inspections were performed on Mexican trucks by DOT’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.

During those inspections only 1.2 percent of Mexican drivers were placed out of service for a violation, as compared to nearly 7 percent of U.S. drivers who were inspected. About 21.2 percent of Mexican trucks – compared to 21.8 percent of U.S. trucks – were placed out of service for safety reasons or because they had violated some other regulation.

Steve Mulder, a spokesman for the Alliance to Keep U.S. Jobs, says the obstacles to resolving the debate over Mexican truck safety – have been removed. He adds, – the tariffs, which remain in place, were prompted by – pure politicking – in the United States, and the new DOT report – makes it clear that Mexico has lived up to the United States’ demands when it comes to truck safety.

Tags: Mexican trucks, NAFB, OIG