St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department

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St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department

• M.C.S.A.P. Unit
• (Motor Carrier Safety Assistance Program)

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Role of the MCSAP Unit

• Reduce commercial vehicle accidents in the city
  of Saint Louis through the enforcement of
  Commercial Vehicle Federal Regulations
• Conduct random inspections of all commercial
  vehicles in the city of Saint Louis
• Report all findings to the Highway Patrol

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What is MCSAP?

• The Motor Carrier Safety Assistance Program
  (MCSAP) is a federally funded grant program to
  assist states with the overall goal of reducing
  CMV involved accidents and hazardous material
  incidents through consistent, uniform and
  effective CMV safety programs.

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• The MCSAP Unit consists of a supervisor and five
  fully trained inspectors, capable of inspecting
  commercial vehicles (including those carrying
  hazardous materials) and passenger buses.

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• The MCSAP grant provides the funds necessary to
  conduct safety inspections. Funding includes
  salaries, uniforms, vehicles, equipment and
  training.

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Inspection Levels

• MCSAP Officers conduct three types of
  inspections on commercial vehicles
• Level 1 Inspection full inspection of
  vehicle/driver
• Level 2 Inspection walk-around
• Level 3 Inspection Driver only

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Level 1 Inspection
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Level I Inspection

• This is a full inspection of both the vehicle and
  driver.
• Vehicle inspection includes a full inspection of
  the braking system, lighting system, steering
  components, suspension, frame, tires, fuel
  system, exhaust, load (including any haz-mat,)
  connections between truck and trailer and any
  required equipment needed inside the cab.

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Level I Inspection (contd)

• All violations found during the vehicle
  inspection are documented by the officer on a
  Driver/Vehicle Examination Form.
• Some violations will cause the vehicle to be
  placed out-of-service.
• A vehicle that passes a Level I Inspection will
  receive a CVSA sticker deeming them as safe and
  exempt from inspection for a period of 3-months.

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Level I Inspection (contd)

• Driver/Vehicle inspection forms are prepared
  electronically on the computer and can be printed
  out for the driver.
• The report is later uploaded to the Missouri
  State Highway Patrol and entered into a Federal
  database accessible to all law enforcement.

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Level I Inspection (contd)

• In addition to the vehicle inspection, the
  officer will also inspect the driver for valid
  credentials, required paperwork and their log
  book (if required.)
• Certain violations can place a driver
  out-of-service, as well. Such violations can
  include improper drivers license class for
  operating a CMV or a false log book.

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Level II Inspection

• A Level II inspection (otherwise known as the
  walk-around) includes the same inspection
  points as a Level I inspection, except that the
  brakes are not inspected.
• This type of inspection normally takes place
  during inclement weather or when existing
  conditions would not make it safe for the officer
  to place himself under the vehicle for this type
  of inspection.

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Level III Inspection

• A Level III Inspection involves an inspection of
  the driver only.
• These inspections take place on an interstate,
  where a higher level of inspection would not be
  safe or practical.
• Level III inspections are encouraged when
  stopping over-the-road truckers to help reduce
  driver fatigue.

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Training

• Inspections of Commercial Motor Vehicles and
  their drivers can be conducted only by trained
  law enforcement personnel. The training is
  standard throughout North America, as the United
  States, Canada and Mexico all abide by the same
  rules.
• The training is referred to as NAS Part A (Level
  III only) and Part B (Level I).

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Training (contd)

• In order to become a fully trained inspector,
  officers attend 2 weeks of the NAS Part A B
  courses. During these two weeks, officers
  receive 64 hours of class room training, are
  given two written tests and are required to
  perform a Level I inspection under the watchful
  eye of a certified inspector.

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Training (contd)

• Once the officer successfully passes both
  classes, they must complete 30 Level I
  inspections with a trained officer.
• Beyond that, they must maintain their
  certification each year by completing a minimum
  of 32 Level I inspections.
• During 2009, MCSAP officers completed nearly
  10,000 inspections in St. Louis.

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Training (contd)

• Additionally, the MCSAP grant requires officers
  to be trained in Haz-Mat and cargo tank
  inspections as well.
• This is a 2-week course, as well and permits for
  64 hours of classroom training and 2 written
  tests.
• Once certified, officers must conduct a minimum
  of 8 Haz-Mat inspections per year. In 2009, 378
  Haz-Mat inspections were conducted.

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Training (contd)

• Officers are also certified to conduct motor
  coach inspections. This is a one-week course,
  including 32 hours of classroom instruction and a
  written test.
• Officers must conduct a minimum of 8 Level I
  motor coach inspections in order to maintain
  their certification.
• In 2009, 61 bus inspections were conducted.

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Support for District Officers

• MCSAP officers will respond to assist district
  officers with any incident involving a Commercial
  Vehicle, including accidents, traffic stops and
  haz-mat spills.

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Final Thoughts

• While the final numbers are not out for 2009
  yet, here are a few statistics involving
  commercial vehicles for 2008
• There were 2,470 CMV accidents involving either
  injury or death in the State of Missouri during
  2008.
• 115 of these accidents were fatal
• 1,922 CMV accidents involving either injury or
  death occurred in St. Louis City/County.

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Final Thoughts (contd)

• Between 2006-2008, there were 14 fatal accidents
  involving a CMV in the city of St. Louis.
  Additionally, there were 660 injury accidents
  involving a CMV in the city of St. Louis.
• The number one spot for the likelihood of a CMV
  involved accident to occur in St. Louis is within
  a 3 mile radius of Hall Street and Adelaide.

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Final Thoughts (contd)

• The overall goal of the MCSAP Unit is to reduce
  CMV involved crashes in St. Louis. Preliminary
  information suggests that there were only 2 fatal
  accidents involving a CMV during 2009 in St.
  Louis City and that the overall number of CMV
  accidents was on a downward trend. This is in
  line with the same trend across the state of
  Missouri.

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Final Thoughts (contd)

• Ensuring that unsafe trucks are removed from St.
  Louis roads and encouraging the truck industry to
  maintain a high standard of safety when placing
  their drivers on the road is the ultimate goal of
  the MCSAP Unit.

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• QUESTIONS?
• Sgt. Paul Lauer Supervisor
• Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Unit
• palauer_at_slmpd.org