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BISC Summer Meeting<strong>General</strong> <strong>Session</strong> MinutesMonday <strong>June</strong> <strong>11</strong>, 20<strong>12</strong>, <strong>12</strong>:00 pm – 5:30 pmTuesday <strong>June</strong> <strong>12</strong>, 20<strong>12</strong>, 8:00 am – 5:00 pmHyatt Dulles, Herndon, VAMonday <strong>June</strong> <strong>11</strong>, 20<strong>12</strong>:A luncheon was served at noon. The meeting with approximately 75 attendees was called to order at<strong>12</strong>:20 pm by Charles Corder, Chairman. Attendees were welcomed and first time attendees were invitedto stand and introduce themselvesNorm Littler, Executive Director, reviewed the materials contained in the folder given to attendeeswhich included the minutes from the January BISC meetings, a BISC Legislative Review from ClydeHart, BISC Counsel, and a letter from Peter Pantuso, President and CEO of the ABA. This letterprovided information about a proposed Jan 10, 2013 NTSB training session focusing on what motorcoachcompanies should do in the event of an accident. Attached to this letter was a questionnaire which Normencouraged the attendees to complete and return so that ABA can determine if there is enough interest inproceeding with this one day session.Norm also reviewed the process for submitting suggestions/requests to the any of the 5 workingcommittees, and how to submit the expense form. Additionally he reminded attendees of the upcomingInternational Fires in Vehicles Conference being held in Chicago on Sept 27 & 28 this year, Lastly thesponsors for the <strong>June</strong> 20<strong>12</strong> BISC meetings were thanked and given a round of applause.Clyde Hart, BISC Counsel, then read the anti-trust guidelines that prohibit the discussion of routes,rates, and/or services at any time during these BISC meetings. (As mentioned above by Norm, Clyde’sLegislative Report was included in the materials folder given to all attendees).
Page 2.Loretta Bitner, FMCSA Chief of Passenger Carrier Safety Division provided an overview of progressmade since the 2009 DOT Motorcoach Safety Action Plan was introduced:- By Oct/<strong>12</strong> all “large” bus fleets must be ADA access compliant, this will be an item checkedduring FMCSA carrier reviews going forward- Currently working on a bus leasing rule- Safety fitness determination rule- Training for inspectors has been updated- Will continue with more stringent enforcement action- Pre-employment screening program- Cell phone/texting ban rule- Plans for an EOBR rule are being re-evaluated- Alcohol/drug screening information clearing house- Driver training program will be reviewed for possible updating- Drivers should be reminded that they must carry a copy of their medical certificate- Monitoring sleep apnea research- Listening sessions for hours of service issues- National registry for driver medical examiners- Safer bus mobile app- Changes being made to the FMCSA passenger carrier website- Safety tips are now being published in more languages- National complaint database will be updated- A reminder that FMCSA safety performance thresholds are highest for passenger carriersand therefore it makes sense that bus companies monitor their scores regularly and ensureproblems are corrected early- During the first year of CSA, driver violations for all types of carriers is down <strong>12</strong>%, violationsper inspection is down 9%, and 83% of warning letters resulted in improvements being made- FMCSA believes that there is a strong link between unsafe CSA driver scores and crashes- The Agency is evolving and all parts of the FMCSA have been unifying and coordinating theirefforts to better manage/screen carrier and re-incarnated carrier applications- The recent enforcement action included shutting down 26 companies and 3 ownersDr. Benisse Lester, FMCSA Chief Medical Officer gave a power point presentation overview of driverfatigue issues and the medical examiners registry program. More information about this program isavailable on the web at nrcme.fmcsa.dot.govAt 1:35 pm Chairman Corder thanked the presenters and then attendees were invited to attend eitherOSHA 10 training sessions being led by Greyhound safety staff, the VTOC Committee Meeting, or theHuman Performance Committee Meeting.<strong>Session</strong>s concluded for the day at approximately 5:00 pm
Page 3.Tuesday <strong>June</strong> <strong>12</strong>, 20<strong>12</strong>:Breakfast for BISC attendees was provided from 7:00 am – 8:00 am. At 8:00 am the OSHA 10, VTOC,and Human Performance meetings resumed.All attendees reconvened for lunch at <strong>12</strong>:00 noon. At <strong>12</strong>:25 pm the meeting was again called to order anda special guest speaker from the Transportation Security Administration was introduced.Ron Masciana, Deputy <strong>General</strong> Manager, TSNM Mass Transit & Passenger Rail Security, TSA gavean overview of recent TSA activities and programs as they related to the bus and motorcoach industry.He then conducted a Q&A session and was able to answer/clarify a variety of bus/coach security issues.Ron was thanked for his attendance and was given a round of applause. He extended an invitation toforward any further questions to Norm who in turn will coordinate a response.At 1:00 pm attendees returned to their OSHA 10, VTOC Committee, or Human Performance Committeesessions.Chairman Corder called the meeting back to order at 3:10 pm in the concluding <strong>General</strong> <strong>Session</strong>.Committee Chairs provided a summary of the issues discussed in their meetings:Government Review, Dan Tomlinson, Chair- This committee did not meet and members attended either the OSHA 10 training or HumanPerformance Committee sessionsHuman Performance, Wes Pemble, Chair- Discussed finding ways to provide training for our members about fatigue issues as they relate toa) manager/supervisors, and b) drivers- Also discussed ensuring that all are aware of the full range of potential consequences of drivingwhile fatigued- Discussed the suggestion that an industry standard bus/coach driver training program should bedeveloped. The committee will be working with FMCSA and with IMG to pursue this concept- There was also some talk about developing an industry employee handbook, but this project willnot be pursued until work on the driver training program is completeSecurity, Mike Licata (Col. USAF Ret’d), Chair- This committee did not meet as they will be involved in the all day TSA exercise on WednesdayVehicle Technical Operations, James Morra, Chair- Retro fitting seat belts into older coaches and how to ensure passengers use of them- It appears that retro fitting electronic stability control systems will not be possible- Hours of service docket open for comment- CSA rating system docket open for comments- Vehicle speed limiters/governors are mandated in Ontario and Quebec, and it seems likely thatthere will be similar rulemaking advanced in the USA at some point- Tire pressure monitoring systems are getting mixed reviews as they are not very user friendly andcarriers have experienced a number of technical problems
Page 4.Workplace Health and Environmental Safety, Al Smith, Chair- This committee did not meet but coordinated the OSHA 10 training sessions. Joe Torres, Lynette,and Doris Francis from Greyhound provided training in the following topics:o Introduction to OSHAo Personal Protective Equipmento Exit Routes, Emergency Action Plans, Fire Prevention Plans, and Fire Protectiono Walking – Working Surfaceso Safety and Health programso Hazard Communicationso Electricalo Machine Guardingo Blood borne PathogensChairman Corder thanked all of the presenters and attendees. He reminded committee chairs to submittheir minutes promptly, and once again highlighted the Fires in Vehicles Conference coming up inSeptember. The <strong>June</strong> 20<strong>12</strong> BISC Meeting was adjourned at 3:25 pm.
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