On Thursday the House of Representatives passed their Surface Transportation Reauthorization and Reform Act. It still needs to be normalized with the Senate’s DRIVE bill and re-voted upon by both houses and signed by President Obama. So it’s not law, yet. But it is interesting. Particularly the portions that deal with “auto safety,” (worth noting: the bill claims to maintain auto safety):
- Automakers now have 15 years, instead of 10, to fix recalled vehicles.
- Evidence that an automaker failed to meet federal safety guidelines cannot be used against that company in court.
- Authorizes money for and requires the safety administration to study and report on if and or at what levels a marijuana usage threshold should be implemented similar to a blood-alcohol limit for driving.
More related to our industry the bill authorizes additional funding for “freight corridors” and for technology infrastructure to facilitate trucking efficiencies.
There is a lot to like in this bill and there are also a lot that seem rather head-scratchingly absurd.