Safety Thursday: Load Securement
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA) Compliance Safety Accountability (CSA) program is designed to improve large truck and bus safety in order to reduce crashes, injuries, and fatalities associated with commercial motor vehicles.
The CSA program carries severe penalties for cargo securement under the Vehicle Maintenance Behavior Analysis and Safety Improvement Category (BASIC). While load securement violations may seem simple to identify, they are not as easy to spot as some drivers expect.
Per the CSA program, proper load securement is critical, not only because law enforcement keeps a close eye on load securement, but also, the public is vulnerable to road hazards from improper securement.
Areas to pay special attention to are:
393.104 (f) (3) Loose/unfastened tiedown
392.9 (a) (2) Failing to secure vehicle equipment
393.110 (b) Insufficient tiedowns; without headerboard/blocking
393.104 (b) Damaged securement system/tiedowns
Operators should fully understand the cargo securement criteria listed in the Federal Motor Safety Regulations.