A major federal and state crackdown has resulted in hundreds of unsafe buses and drivers being removed from the roads.
From March 28 to April 6, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and its state partners conducted 2,782 surprise passenger carrier safety inspections.
The combined agencies issued out-of-service citations to 156 drivers and 262 vehicles.
Earlier, another 3,000 inspections from March 12 to 28 resulted in nearly 300 passenger carrier vehicles being placed out of service.
Investigators also initiated 95 full safety compliance reviews on commercial passenger bus companies. These reviews determine a carrier’s safety rating.
FMCSA has been increasing its inspections. Roadside safety inspections have doubled from 12,991 in 2005 to 25,703 in 2010. Compliance reviews on carriers more than doubled from 457 in 2005 to 1,042 in 2010.
The agency is also encouraging travelers to report suspected unsafe commercial driver or vehicle information.
