Assessment of Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) Holders’ Traffic Violations, Convictions, and Suspensions

To collect information to assess why CDL holders’ major traffic offenses are underreported and to make recommendations for improving State and court processes for collecting and processing reports accurately and efficiently. 

This project was designed to assess the reporting issues described below and to recommend research-based methods for improving the processes within States and in courts.

The study tracked the final disposition of a citation from issuance in several different States. This process determined if a major or serious traffic offense for a CDL holder resulted in a conviction, an exoneration, a suspension, or a non-suspension. The research also identified the process gaps when a conviction occurred that failed to result in the appropriate disqualification or suspension of a driver’s CDL. Process gaps could have included a court’s failure to transmit a disqualified or suspended CDL to the State Driver Licensing Agency (SDLA) or a SDLA’s failure to disqualify or suspend the CDL when required. The study investigated why courts were not promptly or accurately reporting convictions (related to major and serious traffic offenses) of CDL holders.

Outcomes of this study include an assessment of the disposition of major traffic citations of CDL holders; a discussion on why many courts are not promptly or accurately reporting CDL holders convicted of major traffic offenses; an assessment of the percentage of suspended CDL holders who are not detected at roadside inspections; and an assessment of the percentage of CDL holders suspended for safety reasons versus the percentage suspended for non-safety reasons.

November 2014: Project kick-off
February 2015: Identify methodology for calculating total count of CDL holders
September 2015: Develop and carry out a plan and related activities to track the disposition of citations for major traffic offenses by CDL holders
June 2016: Analysis of suspended CDL holders
June 2016: Final report, briefing
July 2016: Ongong analysis of suspended CDL holders

FY 2014: $178,570.15
FY 2015: $340,438.00

Analysis is complete.

For more information, contact Nicole Michel of the Research Division at (202) 366-4354 or nicole.michel@dot.gov.

TransAnalytics, LLC in collaboration with Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute (North Dakota State University) and Leidos