FMCSA planning new tank container chassis program

Jan 30, 2004 12:00 PM

Carriers that own tank container chassis soon will fall under a new safety inspection program in the planning stage at the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). The new plan will require chassis owners and those others who provide the chassis to trucking companies to obtain a Department of Transportation (DOT) number and display it on the chassis so that data can be captured.

"Generally, the intermodal tank containers are designed with a skeletal frame around the actual tank," said Andy Beck, FMCSA spokesman. "The skeletal frame has the same type of lower-corner apertures as intermodal box containers to allow the container to rest on a standard container chassis, and be secured by the twist locks."

FMCSA will apply the usual penalty structure and enforcement actions for equipment, including issuing out-of-service orders and revoking DOT numbers when needed.

Within the coming weeks, DOT will outline specific details and a timeline for a notice of proposed rulemaking on the issue, according to DOT information. The new inspection program will be modeled on the compliance review program already in place for the nation’s trucking community. Intermodal container chassis have been subject to routine safety inspections and review during federal and local enforcement actions.

Chassis not owned by trucking companies are not included as part of the existing compliance review process for truck operators, according to FMCSA.