Of all the CSA 2010 BASICs, Driver Fitness is probably the most hotly debated among transportation professionals. From maximum body mass indexes to neck size disqualifications, rumors and anger abound. To help make sense of the regulations, and hopefully cool down the debate, we’re detailing the specifics of what to look out for, and how these new criteria matter on the road.

Like the Fatigued Driving BASIC, Driver Fitness is calculated using an equation that compares the:

• Number of violations,
• Time since their occurrence,
• Severity of each violation, and
• Number of relevant inspections. 

Violations for the Driver Fitness BASIC are broken into six groups, with each error weighted based on its relationship to crash risk (1 – 10, low to high). The first five categories are fairly straightforward violations:

Medical Certificate

Expired medical examiner's certificate: 1

Driver not medically reexamined after physical or mental injury/impairment: 1

Fitness/Jumping OOS

Allowing driver to operate during driver, vehicle, or motor carrier Out-Of-Service (OOS) order: 10

Driver Qualification

Failure to notify licensing jurisdiction of traffic law conviction: 6

Non-English speaking driver: 6

Endorsements and Vehicle Group

Operating on learner's permit without valid driver’s license: 3

Failing to train HM employees as required: 3 

Multiple License

Operating a CMV with more than one driver's license: 10

Allowing driver with more than one CDL to drive a CMV: 10

The sixth group is where much of the rumors and debate surrounding the BASICs seem to originate:

Physical

Driver not physically qualified: 2

Driver lacking physical qualification(s): 2

The first five categories rely mostly on simple yes-no questions about a driver’s actions while trucking freight, such as: Do you have a medical certificate in your possession?

The Physical group’s violations, however, are more open for debate because they rely on a physician to make a ruling by interpreting Federal guidelines.

Some of the rules that determine a trucker’s physical ability to safely drive are straightforward. For example, drivers cannot suffer from epilepsy or insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus. But, other qualifications are much more subjective and require the doctor to decide which ailments are “likely to interfere with [the patient’s] ability to operate a commercial motor vehicle safely.” From high blood pressure to arthritis to respiratory dysfunction, individual doctors have to decide the severity of driver’s a disease or injury — and use that judgment to decide whether or not they are physically qualified to drive a truck.

If you are interested in learning more about these standards, look for our newsletter coming out next week, which will provide more insight into CSA 2010 and Driver Fitness.

In the meantime, tell me what you think:

Is it fair to have individual doctors interpret whether or not a driver is qualified to work?

What complications do you expect from this BASIC?