The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has renewed an exemption that allows a motor carrier to use an alternative cargo securement technique.
In a notice that was published in the Federal Register on Monday, April 21, FMCSA granted an exemption to K&L Trucking that permits the company to secure large metal coils to its trailers using a cargo securement system that differs from what is required in the federal regulations.
Current regulations require that metal coils weighing more than 5,000 pounds and transported with eyes crosswise must be secured using a means to prevent the coil from rolling and to support the coil off the deck. Additional requirements include at least one tiedown through its eye restricting forward motion and at least one tiedown through its eye restricting rearward motion.
In 2020, Delta, Ohio-based K&L Trucking received a five-year exemption that allowed the company to use a single, two-ply nylon-Kevlar strap to attach the coils to a customized metal carrier affixed to the bed of its trailers.
In its application for exemption, K&L said that its business consists entirely of transporting metal coils to a location that is less than 2 miles away.
“As a result, K&L’s trucks never travel faster than 30 miles per hour on the road, as the drive is simply too short for the trucks to accelerate to a higher speed,” the company wrote in 2020. “Practically speaking, the additional weight of the carriers makes them prohibitive for longer hauls but remains feasible for shorter hauls and better provides for the safety of workers and the general public.”
FMCSA granted K&L a five-year exemption on Dec. 4, 2020.
In 2024, the company asked FMCSA to renew and expand its exemption for another five years.
The expanded exemption will apply to all K&L employees driving commercial motor vehicles utilizing this cargo securement technique to transport metal coils less than 4 miles to and from a designated location.
FMCSA granted the renewal, saying that there was no evidence the original exemption resulted “in any degradation in safety.” LL
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