83_FR_24250 83 FR 24149 - Agency Information Collection Activities; Approval of a New Information Collection Request: Driver Commuting Practices Survey

83 FR 24149 - Agency Information Collection Activities; Approval of a New Information Collection Request: Driver Commuting Practices Survey

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

Federal Register Volume 83, Issue 101 (May 24, 2018)

Page Range24149-24151
FR Document2018-11129

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, FMCSA announces its plan to submit the Information Collection Request (ICR) described below to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval. FMCSA proposes a voluntary survey to inquire about driver commuting practices to fulfill Section 5515 of the Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act, 2015 (FAST Act), which requires FMCSA to conduct a study on the safety effects of motor carrier operator commutes exceeding 150 minutes. The FMCSA Administrator is then required to submit a report to Congress containing the findings of the study. There are no current or future planned regulations associated with this survey, nor does FMCSA plan to actively track driver commutes to obtain data. The survey proposed within this ICR is entirely voluntary, and would gather information on the prevalence of excessive (greater than 150 minutes) commuting of interstate commercial motor vehicle (CMV) drivers, including the number and percentage of drivers who commute; the distances traveled, time zones crossed, time spent commuting, and methods of transportation used; the impact of excessive commuting on safety and CMV driver fatigue; and the commuting practices of CMV drivers and policies of motor carriers.

Federal Register, Volume 83 Issue 101 (Thursday, May 24, 2018)
[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 101 (Thursday, May 24, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 24149-24151]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2018-11129]


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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

[Docket No. FMCSA-2017-0313]


Agency Information Collection Activities; Approval of a New 
Information Collection Request: Driver Commuting Practices Survey

AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), DOT.

ACTION: Notice and request for comments.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, FMCSA 
announces its plan to submit the Information Collection Request (ICR) 
described below to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review 
and approval.
    FMCSA proposes a voluntary survey to inquire about driver commuting 
practices to fulfill Section 5515 of the Fixing America's Surface 
Transportation Act, 2015 (FAST Act), which requires FMCSA to conduct a 
study on the safety effects of motor carrier operator commutes 
exceeding 150 minutes. The FMCSA Administrator is then required to 
submit a report to Congress containing the findings of the study. There 
are no current or future planned regulations associated with this 
survey,

[[Page 24150]]

nor does FMCSA plan to actively track driver commutes to obtain data.
    The survey proposed within this ICR is entirely voluntary, and 
would gather information on the prevalence of excessive (greater than 
150 minutes) commuting of interstate commercial motor vehicle (CMV) 
drivers, including the number and percentage of drivers who commute; 
the distances traveled, time zones crossed, time spent commuting, and 
methods of transportation used; the impact of excessive commuting on 
safety and CMV driver fatigue; and the commuting practices of CMV 
drivers and policies of motor carriers.

DATES: Please send your comments by June 25, 2018. OMB must receive 
your comments by this date in order to act quickly on the ICR.

ADDRESSES: All comments should reference Federal Docket Management 
System (FDMS) Docket Number FMCSA-2017-0313. Interested persons are 
invited to submit written comments on the proposed information 
collection to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office 
of Management and Budget. Comments should be addressed to the attention 
of the Desk Officer, Department of Transportation/Federal Motor Carrier 
Safety Administration, and sent via electronic mail to 
[email protected], or faxed to (202) 395-6974, or mailed to 
the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management 
and Budget, Docket Library, Room 10102, 725 17th Street NW, Washington, 
DC 20503.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Nicole Michel, Mathematical 
Statistician, FMCSA's Office of Analysis, Research, and Technology's 
Research Division, Department of Transportation, Federal Motor Carrier 
Safety Administration, 6th Floor, West Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue 
SE, Washington, DC 20590-0001. Telephone: 202-366-4354; Email Address: 
[email protected]. Office hours are from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday 
through Friday, except Federal Holidays.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 
    Title: Driver Commuting Practices Survey.
    OMB Control Number: 2126-00XX.
    Type of Request: New information collection.
    Respondents: A random sample of licensed CMV operators, to include 
both freight operators and those with a passenger bus endorsement.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 500 CMV drivers (250 each of 
freight drivers and commercial passenger bus drivers).
    Estimated Time per Response: The estimated average time for a 
driver to complete the survey is 20 minutes.
    Expiration Date: N/A. This is a new information collection.
    Frequency of Response: This survey requires a one-time response per 
CMV operator. The survey will be open for a minimum of four weeks to 
collect responses.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden: The estimated total annual burden is 
166.7 hours.

Background

    On December 4, 2015, the FAST Act was signed into law (Pub. L. 114-
94,129 Stat. 1312, 1557 (Dec. 4, 2015)). Section 5515 of the FAST Act 
directs the FMCSA Administrator to ``conduct a study on the safety 
effects of motor carrier operator commutes exceeding 150 minutes'' 
(subsection (a)). The Act further specifies that a report containing 
the findings of this study should be submitted to Congress no later 
than 18 months after the date of enactment of the Act (subsection (b)). 
FMCSA must complete this information collection to meet the specified 
congressional requirements set forth in the FAST Act.
    Additionally, during the 114th Congress (2015-2016), legislation 
titled ``The Truck Safety Act'' was introduced. This legislation, which 
has not been enacted to date, provided greater context to inform study 
of this area (S. 1739, 114th Cong. Sec.  7) by proposing the following:

SECTION. 7. STUDY ON COMMERCIAL MOTOR VEHICLE DRIVER COMMUTING

    (a) Effects of Excessive Commuting.--The Administrator of the 
FMCSA shall conduct a study of the effects of excessive commuting on 
safety and commercial motor vehicle driver fatigue.
    (b) Study.--In conducting the study, the Administrator shall 
consider--
    (1) the prevalence of excessive driver commuting in the 
commercial motor vehicle industry, including the number and 
percentage of drivers who commute;
    (2) the distances traveled, time zones crossed, time spent 
commuting, and methods of transportation used;
    (3) research on the impact of excessive commuting on safety and 
commercial motor vehicle driver fatigue;
    (4) the commuting practices of commercial motor vehicle drivers 
and policies of motor carriers;
    (5) the FMCSA regulations, policies, and guidance regarding 
excessive driver commuting; and
    (6) any other matters the Administrator considers appropriate.

    In the past two decades, as the number of workers has increased and 
the distance to affordable housing has also increased in most 
metropolitan areas, commuting times have increased in the United 
States. According to the 2015 Urban Mobility Scorecard,\1\ travel 
delays due to traffic congestion caused drivers to waste more than 3 
billion gallons of fuel and kept travelers stuck in their cars for 
nearly 7 billion extra hours (42 hours per rush-hour commuter).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ Schrank, David; Eisele, Bill; Lomax, Tim; and Bak, Jim. 
(2015.) 2015 Urban Mobility Scorecard. Texas A&M Transportation 
Institute and Inrix, Inc., available at: http://static.tti.tamu.edu/tti.tamu.edu/documents/mobility-scorecard-2015.pdf.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Long commuting times can adversely affect CMV drivers in multiple 
ways, for example:
     Compromising off-duty time. Long commuting times can 
reduce a driver's available off-duty time for sleep and personal 
activities. This can lead to excessive fatigue while on duty, creating 
safety concerns for both the CMV driver and other drivers on the roads.
     Impacting driver health. A recent study was conducted that 
monitored 4,297 adults from 12 metropolitan Texas counties. In this 
region, 90 percent of people commute to work. The study found that the 
drivers who have long commuting times were more likely to have poor 
cardiovascular health and be less physically fit.\2\ This study showed 
that people who commute long distances to work weigh more, are less 
physically active, and have higher blood pressure.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \2\ Hoehner, Christine; Barlow, Carolyn; Allen, Peg; and 
Schootman, Mario. (2012.) Commuting Distance, Cardiorespiratory 
Fitness, and Metabolic Risk. American Journal of Preventive Medicine 
42(6): 571-578.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    The objective of the survey proposed in this ICR is to study the 
following CMV driver characteristics:
     Work history;
     Commuting time, transportation mode, and recording of that 
time;
     Driving schedules;
     Rests and breaks;
     Miles driven annually; and
     Demographics.
    Safety data obtained by the Motor Carrier Information Management 
System (MCMIS) database will be used to determine whether there are any 
noticeable safety impacts corresponding to commuting times.

II. Data Collection Plan

    The information collection is a one-time, Web-based collection, 
including surveys of current and past drivers of freight and passenger 
vehicles. The survey will be entirely online. There will be no paper 
survey. The general survey approach and design is as follows:

[[Page 24151]]

    1. FMCSA will provide a random sample of 12,000 drivers obtained by 
cross-referencing a random sample of records from the Commercial 
Driver's License Information System (CDLIS) data with the licensing 
States' Commercial Driver's License (CDL) driver histories. The samples 
will be divided into one list for drivers who operate (or previously 
operated) freight vehicles and a second list for those who drive (or 
previously drove) passenger-carrying vehicles.
    2. The sample of drivers obtained from CDLIS data will also be 
queried in MCMIS for safety results of these drivers; this data will be 
used to assess non-response bias and to compare safety records of 
responding drivers with their survey responses on commuting times. To 
the extent possible, MCMIS data may be used to try to verify whether 
drivers with a passenger endorsement on their CDL are, in fact, 
passenger bus drivers.
    3. Using a mail-Web methodology, the driver commute survey will be 
sent out by the research team, on behalf of FMCSA, to the 12,000 
selected drivers identified in step 1. These drivers will be solicited 
to complete an online survey, using a recruitment letter (with a $2 
pre-incentive), a reminder postcard, and a second follow-up letter. The 
letter will inform the drivers that they will receive a check for $10 
upon completion of the survey, which is expected to average 20 minutes 
to complete. Our initial expectation is that 4.17 percent of the 12,000 
(500) will complete the survey on the Web. The burden analysis is based 
on this figure of 500 responses.

III. Comments Received on the 60-Day Federal Register Notice of This 
Proposed Information Collection Request

    The Agency received 381 comments in response to this notice, of 
which 18 were supportive of the study, 22 were deemed not relevant to 
this information collection, 11 were neutral or provided information 
regarding the proposed topic of driver commuting, 326 were negative 
toward the study (one of these comments was a duplicate posting and two 
of the comments were second submissions from one individual), and four 
were suggestions for the study.
    The 18 comments received in support of the information collection 
request focused on the impacts commuting can have on commercial 
drivers, and suggested it could be beneficial to look at whether a 
commute should be included in a driver's hours-of-service and properly 
accounted for. The majority of these comments came from individuals, as 
well as the National Transportation Safety Board, the American Academy 
of Sleep Medicine, and the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers 
Association. All parties acknowledged that longer commute times can 
lead to excessive fatigue, particularly for professional drivers.
    The 22 comments that were deemed to be not relevant to this 
information collection addressed the Electronic Logging Device (ELD) 
mandate or the 14-hour rule in the current Hours-of-Service 
regulations, but did not mention or comment on driver commuting time or 
safety impacts. All of these comments were received from individuals.
    The 11 comments received that were simply informative in nature, or 
neutral to the study, were submitted by individuals. The majority of 
these comments gave insight into these drivers' commute times and how 
they commute. One commenter noted that the survey was fine as long as 
it was voluntary and not mandated; as stated earlier in this notice, 
this will be a voluntary survey and each individual question on the 
survey will be voluntary. All survey materials will reinforce this 
information.
    The 326 negative comments received were all from individuals 
(mostly drivers) and not organizations. These comments expressed that 
the survey is an invasion of privacy and that any attempt to regulate a 
commute would be equivalent to the Government telling working citizens 
how far they can live from work, which would be unconstitutional. 
Additionally, several felt that it was unfairly targeting drivers and 
if conducted should be expanded to the general public, as they also may 
have longer commuting times.
    While FMCSA appreciates these views, the agency's mission is 
focused solely on safety of the CMV operations, and it has no authority 
to regulate non-CMV commuters; therefore, it does not conduct surveys 
of the general public unrelated to CMV safety. FMCSA is aware that the 
National Institute of Health is currently working on surveys relating 
to commuting times for other professions than commercial drivers.
    None of these comments were actionable, as FMCSA has no plans, nor 
legal authority, to regulate non-CMV commuting distances. The survey is 
completely voluntary and is not intended to support a mandate or 
regulate driver commutes, but will help the agency gain further 
insights into commuting times experienced by commercial drivers.
    Of the four comments that provided suggestions on the proposed 
information collection, three suggested that the survey should be sent 
to carriers and employers instead of individual drivers. FMCSA has 
considered this suggestion, but believes that employers and carriers 
would not necessarily know how long an individual employee is 
commuting. Every driver has a unique circumstance with their commute, 
and this information collection is aimed at better understanding the 
dynamics of individual drivers' commutes.
    Public Comments Invited: You are asked to comment on any aspect of 
this information collection, including: (1) Whether the proposed 
collection is necessary for the FMCSA to perform its functions; (2) the 
accuracy of the estimated burden; (3) ways for the FMCSA to enhance the 
quality, usefulness, and clarity of the collected information; and (4) 
ways that the burden could be minimized without reducing the quality of 
the collected information.

    Issued under the authority delegated in 49 CFR 1.87 on May 16, 
2018.
G. Kelly Regal,
Associate Administrator for Office of Research and Information 
Technology.
[FR Doc. 2018-11129 Filed 5-23-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4910-EX-P



                                                                              Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 101 / Thursday, May 24, 2018 / Notices                                                  24149

                                                Dennis A. Feather (SC)                                  obtaining an exemption from the vision                conditions of the exemption; (2) the
                                                Robert E. Johnston, Jr. (WA)                            requirement in the FMCSRs for                         exemption has resulted in a lower level
                                                Gregory J. Kuhn (NE)                                    interstate CMV drivers (64 FR 68195; 65               of safety than was maintained before it
                                                David W. Leach (IL)                                     FR 20251; 67 FR 10471; 67 FR 17102;                   was granted; or (3) continuation of the
                                                Jason S. Logue (GA)                                     67 FR 19798; 69 FR 17267; 69 FR 19611;                exemption would not be consistent with
                                                David F. Martin (NJ)                                    71 FR 14566; 71 FR 16410; 71 FR 19604;                the goals and objectives of 49 U.S.C.
                                                Martin L. Mayes (GA)                                    71 FR 30227; 73 FR 27014; 75 FR 27622;                31136(e) and 31315.
                                                Daniel A. McNabb, Jr. (KS)                              77 FR 20879; 77 FR 26816; 77 FR 31427;
                                                Phillip L. Mello (CA)                                                                                         V. Preemption
                                                                                                        81 FR 91239):
                                                Robert L. Murray (IL)                                   Edward W. Hosier (MO)                                    During the period the exemption is in
                                                Steve W. Quenzer (SD)                                   Craig T. Jorgensen (WI)                               effect, no State shall enforce any law or
                                                Bradley W. Reed (AL)                                    Jose A. Lopez (CT)                                    regulation that conflicts with this
                                                Erik M. Rice (TX)                                       Earl E. Martin (VA)                                   exemption with respect to a person
                                                Tatum R. Schmidt (IA)                                   Joseph C. Powell (VA)                                 operating under the exemption.
                                                Harry J. Scholl (PA)                                    David L. Schachle (PA)
                                                Jacob A. Shaffer (PA)                                                                                         VI. Conclusion
                                                                                                        Mark Sobczyk (WI)
                                                James S. Smith (AR)                                                                                             Based upon its evaluation of the 119
                                                                                                          The drivers were included in docket
                                                Steven S. Smith, Jr. (PA)                                                                                     exemption applications, FMCSA renews
                                                                                                        numbers FMCSA–1999–6480; FMCSA–
                                                  The drivers were included in docket                                                                         the exemptions of the aforementioned
                                                                                                        2001–11426; FMCSA–2006–24015;
                                                number FMCSA–2014–0003. Their                                                                                 drivers from the vision requirement in
                                                                                                        FMCSA–2012–0039. Their exemptions
                                                exemptions are applicable as of May 16,                                                                       49 CFR 391.41(b)(10), subject to the
                                                                                                        are applicable as of May 25, 2018, and
                                                2018, and will expire on May 16, 2020.                                                                        requirements cited above. In accordance
                                                                                                        will expire on May 25, 2020.
                                                  As of May 21, 2018, and in                                                                                  with 49 U.S.C. 31136(e) and 31315, each
                                                                                                          As of May 30, 2018, and in
                                                accordance with 49 U.S.C. 31136(e) and                                                                        exemption will be valid for two years
                                                                                                        accordance with 49 U.S.C. 31136(e) and
                                                31315, the following three individuals                                                                        unless revoked earlier by FMCSA.
                                                                                                        31315, the following three individuals
                                                have satisfied the renewal conditions for               have satisfied the renewal conditions for               Issued on: May 16, 2018.
                                                obtaining an exemption from the vision                  obtaining an exemption from the vision                Larry W. Minor,
                                                requirement in the FMCSRs for                           requirement in the FMCSRs for                         Associate Administrator for Policy.
                                                interstate CMV drivers (75 FR 9480; 75                  interstate CMV drivers (67 FR 15662; 67               [FR Doc. 2018–11122 Filed 5–23–18; 8:45 am]
                                                FR 14656; 75 FR 22176; 75 FR 28684;                     FR 37907; 69 FR 26206; 71 FR 26602;                   BILLING CODE 4910–EX–P
                                                77 FR 23800; 79 FR 22000; 81 FR                         73 FR 27017; 75 FR 27621; 77 FR 27849;
                                                91239): Herbert C. Hirsch, (MO);                        81 FR 91239): Joe W. Brewer, (SC);
                                                Douglas L. Norman, (NC); Wayne J.                       James W. Ellis, 4th, (NC); Kevin R.                   DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
                                                Savage, (VA).                                           Stoner, (PA).
                                                  The drivers were included in docket                     The drivers were included in docket                 Federal Motor Carrier Safety
                                                numbers FMCSA–2009–0011; FMCSA–                         number FMCSA–2002–11714. Their                        Administration
                                                2010–0050. Their exemptions are                         exemptions are applicable as of May 30,
                                                applicable as of May 21, 2018, and will                 2018, and will expire on May 30, 2020.                [Docket No. FMCSA–2017–0313]
                                                expire on May 21, 2020.
                                                  As of May 22, 2018, and in                            IV. Conditions and Requirements                       Agency Information Collection
                                                accordance with 49 U.S.C. 31136(e) and                                                                        Activities; Approval of a New
                                                                                                          The exemptions are extended subject
                                                31315, the following 13 individuals                                                                           Information Collection Request: Driver
                                                                                                        to the following conditions: (1) Each
                                                have satisfied the renewal conditions for                                                                     Commuting Practices Survey
                                                                                                        driver must undergo an annual physical
                                                obtaining an exemption from the vision                  examination (a) by an ophthalmologist                 AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety
                                                requirement in the FMCSRs for                           or optometrist who attests that the                   Administration (FMCSA), DOT.
                                                interstate CMV drivers (79 FR 18392; 79                 vision in the better eye continues to                 ACTION: Notice and request for
                                                FR 29498; 81 FR 91239):                                 meet the requirements in 49 CFR                       comments.
                                                James E. Baker (OH)                                     391.41(b)(10), and (b) by a certified
                                                Aaron D. Barnett (IA)                                   Medical Examiner, as defined by 49 CFR                SUMMARY:   In accordance with the
                                                Danny J. Goss (MO)                                      390.5, who attests that the driver is                 Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995,
                                                James P. Griffin (WA)                                   otherwise physically qualified under 49               FMCSA announces its plan to submit
                                                Dennis P. Hart (OR)                                     CFR 391.41; (2) each driver must                      the Information Collection Request (ICR)
                                                James D. Kessler (SD)                                   provide a copy of the ophthalmologist’s               described below to the Office of
                                                Sherell J. Landry (TX)                                  or optometrist’s report to the Medical                Management and Budget (OMB) for
                                                Ronald N. Lindgren (MN)                                 Examiner at the time of the annual                    review and approval.
                                                Rodney J. McMorran (IA)                                 medical examination; and (3) each                        FMCSA proposes a voluntary survey
                                                John L. Meese (MO)                                      driver must provide a copy of the                     to inquire about driver commuting
                                                Michael E. Schlachter (WY)                              annual medical certification to the                   practices to fulfill Section 5515 of the
                                                Kenneth W. Sigl (WI)                                    employer for retention in the driver’s                Fixing America’s Surface Transportation
                                                Elmer F. Winters (NC)                                   qualification file or keep a copy of his/             Act, 2015 (FAST Act), which requires
                                                  The drivers were included in docket                   her driver’s qualification if he/her is               FMCSA to conduct a study on the safety
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                                                number FMCSA–2014–0004. Their                           self- employed. The driver must also                  effects of motor carrier operator
                                                exemptions are applicable as of May 22,                 have a copy of the exemption when                     commutes exceeding 150 minutes. The
                                                2018, and will expire on May 22, 2020.                  driving, for presentation to a duly                   FMCSA Administrator is then required
                                                  As of May 25, 2018, and in                            authorized Federal, State, or local                   to submit a report to Congress
                                                accordance with 49 U.S.C. 31136(e) and                  enforcement official. The exemption                   containing the findings of the study.
                                                31315, the following seven individuals                  will be rescinded if: (1) The person fails            There are no current or future planned
                                                have satisfied the renewal conditions for               to comply with the terms and                          regulations associated with this survey,


                                           VerDate Sep<11>2014   18:10 May 23, 2018   Jkt 244001   PO 00000   Frm 00069   Fmt 4703   Sfmt 4703   E:\FR\FM\24MYN1.SGM   24MYN1


                                                24150                         Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 101 / Thursday, May 24, 2018 / Notices

                                                nor does FMCSA plan to actively track                   drivers and commercial passenger bus                  the distance to affordable housing has
                                                driver commutes to obtain data.                         drivers).                                             also increased in most metropolitan
                                                   The survey proposed within this ICR                    Estimated Time per Response: The                    areas, commuting times have increased
                                                is entirely voluntary, and would gather                 estimated average time for a driver to                in the United States. According to the
                                                information on the prevalence of                        complete the survey is 20 minutes.                    2015 Urban Mobility Scorecard,1 travel
                                                excessive (greater than 150 minutes)                      Expiration Date: N/A. This is a new                 delays due to traffic congestion caused
                                                commuting of interstate commercial                      information collection.                               drivers to waste more than 3 billion
                                                motor vehicle (CMV) drivers, including                    Frequency of Response: This survey                  gallons of fuel and kept travelers stuck
                                                the number and percentage of drivers                    requires a one-time response per CMV                  in their cars for nearly 7 billion extra
                                                who commute; the distances traveled,                    operator. The survey will be open for a               hours (42 hours per rush-hour
                                                time zones crossed, time spent                          minimum of four weeks to collect                      commuter).
                                                commuting, and methods of                               responses.                                               Long commuting times can adversely
                                                transportation used; the impact of                        Estimated Total Annual Burden: The                  affect CMV drivers in multiple ways, for
                                                excessive commuting on safety and                       estimated total annual burden is 166.7                example:
                                                CMV driver fatigue; and the commuting                   hours.                                                   • Compromising off-duty time. Long
                                                practices of CMV drivers and policies of                Background                                            commuting times can reduce a driver’s
                                                motor carriers.                                                                                               available off-duty time for sleep and
                                                                                                           On December 4, 2015, the FAST Act                  personal activities. This can lead to
                                                DATES: Please send your comments by                     was signed into law (Pub. L. 114–94,129
                                                June 25, 2018. OMB must receive your                                                                          excessive fatigue while on duty, creating
                                                                                                        Stat. 1312, 1557 (Dec. 4, 2015)). Section             safety concerns for both the CMV driver
                                                comments by this date in order to act                   5515 of the FAST Act directs the
                                                quickly on the ICR.                                                                                           and other drivers on the roads.
                                                                                                        FMCSA Administrator to ‘‘conduct a                       • Impacting driver health. A recent
                                                ADDRESSES: All comments should                          study on the safety effects of motor                  study was conducted that monitored
                                                reference Federal Docket Management                     carrier operator commutes exceeding                   4,297 adults from 12 metropolitan Texas
                                                System (FDMS) Docket Number                             150 minutes’’ (subsection (a)). The Act               counties. In this region, 90 percent of
                                                FMCSA–2017–0313. Interested persons                     further specifies that a report containing            people commute to work. The study
                                                are invited to submit written comments                  the findings of this study should be                  found that the drivers who have long
                                                on the proposed information collection                  submitted to Congress no later than 18                commuting times were more likely to
                                                to the Office of Information and                        months after the date of enactment of                 have poor cardiovascular health and be
                                                Regulatory Affairs, Office of                           the Act (subsection (b)). FMCSA must                  less physically fit.2 This study showed
                                                Management and Budget. Comments                         complete this information collection to               that people who commute long
                                                should be addressed to the attention of                 meet the specified congressional                      distances to work weigh more, are less
                                                the Desk Officer, Department of                         requirements set forth in the FAST Act.               physically active, and have higher blood
                                                Transportation/Federal Motor Carrier                       Additionally, during the 114th                     pressure.
                                                Safety Administration, and sent via                     Congress (2015–2016), legislation titled                 The objective of the survey proposed
                                                electronic mail to oira_submission@                     ‘‘The Truck Safety Act’’ was introduced.              in this ICR is to study the following
                                                omb.eop.gov, or faxed to (202) 395–                     This legislation, which has not been                  CMV driver characteristics:
                                                6974, or mailed to the Office of                        enacted to date, provided greater                        • Work history;
                                                Information and Regulatory Affairs,                     context to inform study of this area (S.                 • Commuting time, transportation
                                                Office of Management and Budget,                        1739, 114th Cong. § 7) by proposing the               mode, and recording of that time;
                                                Docket Library, Room 10102, 725 17th                    following:                                               • Driving schedules;
                                                Street NW, Washington, DC 20503.                                                                                 • Rests and breaks;
                                                FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
                                                                                                        SECTION. 7. STUDY ON COMMERCIAL                          • Miles driven annually; and
                                                                                                        MOTOR VEHICLE DRIVER COMMUTING                           • Demographics.
                                                Nicole Michel, Mathematical                                                                                      Safety data obtained by the Motor
                                                Statistician, FMCSA’s Office of                           (a) Effects of Excessive Commuting.—The
                                                                                                        Administrator of the FMCSA shall conduct a            Carrier Information Management System
                                                Analysis, Research, and Technology’s                    study of the effects of excessive commuting           (MCMIS) database will be used to
                                                Research Division, Department of                        on safety and commercial motor vehicle                determine whether there are any
                                                Transportation, Federal Motor Carrier                   driver fatigue.                                       noticeable safety impacts corresponding
                                                Safety Administration, 6th Floor, West                    (b) Study.—In conducting the study, the             to commuting times.
                                                Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE,                    Administrator shall consider—
                                                Washington, DC 20590–0001.                                (1) the prevalence of excessive driver              II. Data Collection Plan
                                                Telephone: 202–366–4354; Email                          commuting in the commercial motor vehicle
                                                                                                        industry, including the number and
                                                                                                                                                                 The information collection is a one-
                                                Address: Nicole.michel@dot.gov. Office                                                                        time, Web-based collection, including
                                                hours are from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday                 percentage of drivers who commute;
                                                                                                          (2) the distances traveled, time zones              surveys of current and past drivers of
                                                through Friday, except Federal                          crossed, time spent commuting, and methods            freight and passenger vehicles. The
                                                Holidays.                                               of transportation used;                               survey will be entirely online. There
                                                SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:                                (3) research on the impact of excessive             will be no paper survey. The general
                                                   Title: Driver Commuting Practices                    commuting on safety and commercial motor              survey approach and design is as
                                                                                                        vehicle driver fatigue;                               follows:
                                                Survey.
                                                                                                          (4) the commuting practices of commercial
                                                   OMB Control Number: 2126–00XX.                       motor vehicle drivers and policies of motor             1 Schrank, David; Eisele, Bill; Lomax, Tim; and
                                                   Type of Request: New information
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                                                                                                        carriers;                                             Bak, Jim. (2015.) 2015 Urban Mobility Scorecard.
                                                collection.                                               (5) the FMCSA regulations, policies, and            Texas A&M Transportation Institute and Inrix, Inc.,
                                                   Respondents: A random sample of                      guidance regarding excessive driver                   available at: http://static.tti.tamu.edu/tti.tamu.edu/
                                                licensed CMV operators, to include both                 commuting; and                                        documents/mobility-scorecard-2015.pdf.
                                                freight operators and those with a                        (6) any other matters the Administrator               2 Hoehner, Christine; Barlow, Carolyn; Allen, Peg;

                                                                                                        considers appropriate.                                and Schootman, Mario. (2012.) Commuting
                                                passenger bus endorsement.                                                                                    Distance, Cardiorespiratory Fitness, and Metabolic
                                                   Estimated Number of Respondents:                       In the past two decades, as the                     Risk. American Journal of Preventive Medicine
                                                500 CMV drivers (250 each of freight                    number of workers has increased and                   42(6): 571–578.



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                                                                              Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 101 / Thursday, May 24, 2018 / Notices                                                  24151

                                                   1. FMCSA will provide a random                       American Academy of Sleep Medicine,                   drivers. FMCSA has considered this
                                                sample of 12,000 drivers obtained by                    and the Owner-Operator Independent                    suggestion, but believes that employers
                                                cross-referencing a random sample of                    Drivers Association. All parties                      and carriers would not necessarily know
                                                records from the Commercial Driver’s                    acknowledged that longer commute                      how long an individual employee is
                                                License Information System (CDLIS)                      times can lead to excessive fatigue,                  commuting. Every driver has a unique
                                                data with the licensing States’                         particularly for professional drivers.                circumstance with their commute, and
                                                Commercial Driver’s License (CDL)                          The 22 comments that were deemed                   this information collection is aimed at
                                                driver histories. The samples will be                   to be not relevant to this information                better understanding the dynamics of
                                                divided into one list for drivers who                   collection addressed the Electronic                   individual drivers’ commutes.
                                                operate (or previously operated) freight                Logging Device (ELD) mandate or the                     Public Comments Invited: You are
                                                vehicles and a second list for those who                14-hour rule in the current Hours-of-                 asked to comment on any aspect of this
                                                drive (or previously drove) passenger-                  Service regulations, but did not mention              information collection, including: (1)
                                                carrying vehicles.                                      or comment on driver commuting time                   Whether the proposed collection is
                                                   2. The sample of drivers obtained                    or safety impacts. All of these comments              necessary for the FMCSA to perform its
                                                from CDLIS data will also be queried in                 were received from individuals.                       functions; (2) the accuracy of the
                                                MCMIS for safety results of these                          The 11 comments received that were                 estimated burden; (3) ways for the
                                                drivers; this data will be used to assess               simply informative in nature, or neutral              FMCSA to enhance the quality,
                                                non-response bias and to compare safety                 to the study, were submitted by                       usefulness, and clarity of the collected
                                                records of responding drivers with their                individuals. The majority of these                    information; and (4) ways that the
                                                survey responses on commuting times.                    comments gave insight into these                      burden could be minimized without
                                                To the extent possible, MCMIS data may                  drivers’ commute times and how they                   reducing the quality of the collected
                                                be used to try to verify whether drivers                commute. One commenter noted that                     information.
                                                with a passenger endorsement on their                   the survey was fine as long as it was
                                                                                                        voluntary and not mandated; as stated                   Issued under the authority delegated in 49
                                                CDL are, in fact, passenger bus drivers.
                                                                                                                                                              CFR 1.87 on May 16, 2018.
                                                   3. Using a mail-Web methodology, the                 earlier in this notice, this will be a
                                                driver commute survey will be sent out                  voluntary survey and each individual                  G. Kelly Regal,
                                                by the research team, on behalf of                      question on the survey will be                        Associate Administrator for Office of
                                                FMCSA, to the 12,000 selected drivers                   voluntary. All survey materials will                  Research and Information Technology.
                                                identified in step 1. These drivers will                reinforce this information.                           [FR Doc. 2018–11129 Filed 5–23–18; 8:45 am]
                                                be solicited to complete an online                         The 326 negative comments received                 BILLING CODE 4910–EX–P
                                                survey, using a recruitment letter (with                were all from individuals (mostly
                                                a $2 pre-incentive), a reminder postcard,               drivers) and not organizations. These
                                                and a second follow-up letter. The letter               comments expressed that the survey is                 DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
                                                will inform the drivers that they will                  an invasion of privacy and that any
                                                receive a check for $10 upon completion                 attempt to regulate a commute would be                Federal Motor Carrier Safety
                                                of the survey, which is expected to                     equivalent to the Government telling                  Administration
                                                average 20 minutes to complete. Our                     working citizens how far they can live                [Docket No. FMCSA–2017–0028]
                                                initial expectation is that 4.17 percent of             from work, which would be
                                                the 12,000 (500) will complete the                      unconstitutional. Additionally, several               Qualification of Drivers; Exemption
                                                survey on the Web. The burden analysis                  felt that it was unfairly targeting drivers           Applications; Vision
                                                is based on this figure of 500 responses.               and if conducted should be expanded to
                                                                                                                                                              AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety
                                                                                                        the general public, as they also may
                                                III. Comments Received on the 60-Day                                                                          Administration (FMCSA), DOT.
                                                                                                        have longer commuting times.
                                                Federal Register Notice of This                            While FMCSA appreciates these                      ACTION: Notice of final disposition.
                                                Proposed Information Collection                         views, the agency’s mission is focused
                                                Request                                                                                                       SUMMARY:   FMCSA announces its
                                                                                                        solely on safety of the CMV operations,
                                                                                                                                                              decision to exempt 23 individuals from
                                                   The Agency received 381 comments                     and it has no authority to regulate non-
                                                                                                                                                              the vision requirement in the Federal
                                                in response to this notice, of which 18                 CMV commuters; therefore, it does not
                                                                                                                                                              Motor Carrier Safety Regulations
                                                were supportive of the study, 22 were                   conduct surveys of the general public
                                                                                                                                                              (FMCSRs) to operate a commercial
                                                deemed not relevant to this information                 unrelated to CMV safety. FMCSA is
                                                                                                                                                              motor vehicle (CMV) in interstate
                                                collection, 11 were neutral or provided                 aware that the National Institute of
                                                                                                                                                              commerce. They are unable to meet the
                                                information regarding the proposed                      Health is currently working on surveys
                                                                                                                                                              vision requirement in one eye for
                                                topic of driver commuting, 326 were                     relating to commuting times for other
                                                                                                                                                              various reasons. The exemptions enable
                                                negative toward the study (one of these                 professions than commercial drivers.
                                                                                                                                                              these individuals to operate CMVs in
                                                comments was a duplicate posting and                       None of these comments were
                                                                                                                                                              interstate commerce without meeting
                                                two of the comments were second                         actionable, as FMCSA has no plans, nor
                                                                                                                                                              the vision requirement in one eye.
                                                submissions from one individual), and                   legal authority, to regulate non-CMV
                                                four were suggestions for the study.                    commuting distances. The survey is                    DATES: The exemptions were applicable
                                                   The 18 comments received in support                  completely voluntary and is not                       on March 17, 2018. The exemptions
                                                of the information collection request                   intended to support a mandate or                      expire on March 17, 2020.
                                                focused on the impacts commuting can                    regulate driver commutes, but will help               FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms.
                                                have on commercial drivers, and                                                                               Christine A. Hydock, Chief, Medical
sradovich on DSK3GMQ082PROD with NOTICES




                                                                                                        the agency gain further insights into
                                                suggested it could be beneficial to look                commuting times experienced by                        Programs Division, (202) 366–4001,
                                                at whether a commute should be                          commercial drivers.                                   fmcsamedical@dot.gov, FMCSA,
                                                included in a driver’s hours-of-service                    Of the four comments that provided                 Department of Transportation, 1200
                                                and properly accounted for. The                         suggestions on the proposed                           New Jersey Avenue SE, Room W64–224,
                                                majority of these comments came from                    information collection, three suggested               Washington, DC 20590–0001. Office
                                                individuals, as well as the National                    that the survey should be sent to carriers            hours are from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., e.t.,
                                                Transportation Safety Board, the                        and employers instead of individual                   Monday through Friday, except Federal


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Document Created: 2018-05-24 00:05:29
Document Modified: 2018-05-24 00:05:29
CategoryRegulatory Information
CollectionFederal Register
sudoc ClassAE 2.7:
GS 4.107:
AE 2.106:
PublisherOffice of the Federal Register, National Archives and Records Administration
SectionNotices
ActionNotice and request for comments.
DatesPlease send your comments by June 25, 2018. OMB must receive your comments by this date in order to act quickly on the ICR.
ContactNicole Michel, Mathematical Statistician, FMCSA's Office of Analysis, Research, and Technology's Research Division, Department of Transportation, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, 6th Floor, West Building, 1200 New Jersey Avenue
FR Citation83 FR 24149 

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