Driver test onus on US operators
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• Heavy goods vehicle driving tests are to be re-introduced in Britain in the near future and now the American Federal Highways Administration has announced proposals to revise regulations aimed in a similar way at improving safety.
But a driving test is not included in the proposals. Instead, the onus for ensuring that the driver is competent will be placed on the employer who will be required to give a driver both a written and a road test before employing him.
The driver will have to submit information concerning his background—including accident record and driving experience—and go through a tighter physical examination than now. It is also proposed to broaden the coverage of the regulations dealing with drugs and the "use and possession of alcoholic beverages" and to establish criteria for removing from service any driver who "commits a felony with a motor vehicle, uses illegal drugs, drives any vehicle while intoxicated, becomes a hit-and-run driver, has his licence suspended or revoked or compiles an extensive traffic record giving evidence of a disregard for traffic regulations and the public safety".