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AAA Supports Revised Hours Of Service Regs; More GPS Use For Truckers

21 April 1999

AAA Supports Revised Hours Of Service Regs; More GPS Use For Truckers

    SAN DIEGO, April 21 -- Concerned with the impact of trucks on
the safety of motorists, AAA said today it supports revisions to hours of
service regulations and expanded use of Global Positioning System tracking by
the trucking industry.
    Delegates to AAA's 96th Annual Meeting here said the hours of service
regulations must have a sound scientific basis which stresses sleep, rest and
operating hours factors, and which promote the ability to drive safely over
all other considerations, including economic.
    The delegates also supported the expanded use of GPS tracking by the
trucking industry to more accurately monitor the hours that truck drivers are
behind the wheel and to increase the efficiency of shipping.
    AAA said it supports reasonable access to trucking company GPS data by
government regulatory agencies when a company has a history of violations or
is being investigated.
    In a related action, AAA called on the U.S. Department of Transportation
to exercise prudence in granting requests for exemptions and waivers from
truck safety regulations and in authorizing pilot programs.  The safety of the
motoring public must be the overriding factor used in considering requests for
exemptions or pilot programs.
    AAA is a not-for-profit federation of 91 clubs with 1,100 offices
providing its nearly 42 million members in the United States and Canada with
travel, financial, insurance and auto-related services.