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Not all motorcoach companies are equally safe. While there are stringent safety regulations in place at the federal level (the "Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations," or FMCSR's; the complete set of regulations can be found online at the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration's (FMCSA) website, http://www.fmcsa.dot.gov and similar laws at virtually every state level, they represent the minimum safety requirements for a commercial motor carrier of passengers to remain in business. Most carriers will operate well above these minimum rules. Some, inevitably, will operate outside the rules. Student travel planners need a way to distinguish between safe and unsafe operators.
Price must not be your reason for selecting an operator. While the price of the trip is important, it must not be the most important criteria for selecting a carrier. Price does relate to safety in many critical ways that a motorcoach consumer needs to understand. High prices don't automatically infer a safe carrier, nor do low prices automatically signal an unsafe carrier, but good safety practices are expensive. If competitive pricing is important, student trip planners need to understand why prices differ.
Research -- well in advance of travel -- is important. If a safe carrier pre-qualification process isn't yet available or if you'd just like to understand that process better or double-check the work that has been done, simple research is the answer. With the phenomenal growth of the Internet and the World Wide Web, the information you need is often just a few clicks away. The checklist in this section will provide background for many of the issues you should ask about when you individually review a carrier for service with your district.
Ask the company for its USDOT identification number.
The number is your best tool to begin your safety review of the motor carrier. All commercial bus and motorcoach companies operating across state lines must be granted "interstate authority" by the FMCSA. That authority requires a minimum insurance coverage, continued operation within federal and state safety rules and subjects the company and its vehicles and drivers to safety review and inspection by federal and state authorities at any time.
Review the carrier's record online.
The USDOT number serves as your key to online research of the carrier's safety record. Go the USDOT's motor carrier safety website at http://www.safersys.org , which can provide you with a snapshot of the carrier's safety record. The site will tell you:
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If the carrier is authorized to transport passengers for hire;
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If the carrier has current insurance in force;
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The carrier's record of regulatory violations or "out-of-service" incidents; those times when a vehicle or a driver is found to be in violation of the rules, and a comparison to national averages;
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The carrier's highway accident record;
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The carrier's current USDOT "safety rating," if any, and the date of the carrier's last "compliance review," or onsite inspection by authorities.
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You should never hire a carrier with an "unsatisfactory" or "conditional" safety rating.
