Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration May 11, 2023 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

FMCSA requests public comment on an application for exemption from the Great Lakes Timber Professionals Association (GLTPA) to allow motor carriers to use fewer tiedowns than required by the regulations for securing shortwood logs transported lengthwise in crib-type vehicles that have been modified or manufactured without front structures, without rear structures, or with a center-mounted crane for loading and unloading. GLTPA and the Wisconsin State Patrol Motor Carrier Enforcement Section partnered to conduct cargo securement testing on stacks of shortwood logs in a crib-type vehicle using different tiedown configurations. Based on this testing, GLTPA proposes alternative cargo securement methods for shortwood logs loaded lengthwise and states that such securement methods will maintain a level of safety that is equivalent to, or greater than, the level of safety achieved without the exemption.