Action
Notice of application for exemption; request for comments.
Summary
FMCSA requests public comment on an application for exemption from the Great Lakes Timber Professionals Association (GLTPA) to allow GLTPA motor carriers in Wisconsin to use cargo securement methods that do not comply with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs) for securing shortwood logs transported lengthwise in crib- type vehicles that have been modified or manufactured without front structures, rear structures, or which have a center-mounted crane for loading and unloading. The 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 believes that the alternative cargo securement methods for securing shortwood logs loaded lengthwise proposed in its application will maintain a level of safety that is equivalent to, or greater than, the level of safety achieved without the exemption. The GLTPA is requesting this temporary exemption in advance of petitioning FMCSA to conduct a rulemaking to amend 49 CFR 393.116.