Deputy Transportation Secretary Polly Trottenberg

FMCSA wants to know: Are truckers using their seat belts?

WASHINGTON — Federal regulators plan to survey truck drivers on their seat belt habits after recent fatality data revealed a high number of unrestrained drivers involved in fatal accidents.

In a notice published Wednesday, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration said it intends to use “quantitative data collection techniques” in an anonymous, self-administered online survey to understand truckers’ behaviors regarding seat belt use and road safety.

“Existing data on the usage of safety...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/fmcsa-wants-to-know-are-truckers-using-their-seat-belts

DOT seeks staff increases to help issue new trucking regulations

Federal agencies responsible for truck safety are requesting significant staffing level increases to help issue and oversee new regulations in fiscal year 2023.

According to the FY23 budget request released by the White House on Monday, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration will look to boost full-time staffing levels from 1,186 positions that were part of the agency’s 2022 budget estimate to 1,285 in the FY23 request, an 8.3% increase. The National Highway Traffic Safety...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/dot-seeks-staff-increases-to-help-issue-new-trucking-regulations

Infrastructure money: ‘Informed risks’ to help guide rollout

With an unprecedented $567 billion it will be receiving from the new bipartisan infrastructure law — much of it to help unclog supply chain bottlenecks — the U.S. Department of Transportation is girding itself for the increased scrutiny it expects to receive to ensure against waste, fraud and abuse.

Katie Thomson, who was named director of bipartisan infrastructure law implementation in December, will focus on working with the White House and other federal and state agencies to “get things done...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/infrastructure-money-science-informed-risks-to-guide-rollout

DOT to grow more than 50% to help oversee infrastructure funding

The largest investment in roads, bridges and highways made by the federal government since the creation of the U.S. interstate highway system is going to require a larger federal workforce to help make it happen, according to a top official at the Department of Transportation.

At a media briefing outlining the first steps to rolling out the $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure package that Congress approved late Friday, Deputy Secretary Polly Trottenberg said her department is bolstering...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/dot-to-grow-more-than-50-to-help-oversee-infrastructure-funding

Trottenberg brings freight policy experience to DOT

Polly Trottenberg, Joe Biden’s pick for deputy secretary of transportation in the incoming administration, will likely be a valuable resource for a Department of Transportation (DOT) secretary nominee lacking experience on major freight policy initiatives.

Trottenberg, who was named to fill the deputy position on Monday, previously served in the Obama-Biden DOT, first as the assistant secretary for transportation policy and undersecretary for policy. She testified several times on Capitol Hill...

https://s29755.pcdn.co/news/trottenberg-brings-freight-policy-experience-to-dot