Houston Truck Deals is dedicated to bringing you the news and views on what is happening within the trucking industry. Today, we’re taking a look at NTSB lady chairperson who also holds a CDL – the first NTSB head to do so:
Deborah A.P. Hersman, Chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board, knows a lot about the transportation industry. In fact, prior to her appointment as Chairman of the NTSB in July of 2009, she served on the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation (1999 to 2004), and has held her Commercial Driver’s License since 2004. What better-qualified woman to honor female truck drivers at the largest heavy-duty trucking event in the world?
Hersman honored female truck drivers at the 2nd Annual Women in Trucking Salute to Women Behind the Wheel, an event that occurred on the last day of the Mid-America Trucking Show in Louisville, Kentucky. The 2010 1st Annual Women in Trucking Salute to Women Behind the Wheel yielded 300 participants, and this year’s was expected to have double attendance. 600 hundred participants are more than enough to beat the former world record for the largest gathering of professional women truck drivers - a record set in 2004 in the Netherlands.
The larger event, The Mid-America Trucking Show, celebrated its fortieth anniversary this year, and had exhibitors from every possible field of the trucking industry.
Hersman departed Washington, D.C. in a 2011 Kenworth T660 heavy-duty, long-haul tractor trailer. The rig was driven by Conway Truckload professional Stephanie Klang. During the course of the journey to Louisville, Hersman rode with four other drivers that work for companies that belong to the Women in Trucking organization, including U.S. Xpress, Schneider, Wal-Mart, and UPS.
Along the way, Hersman observed a Level 1 roadside inspection at a weigh station in Maryland, visited a West Virginia travel center, and more. She met with Kentucky and West Virginia transportation officials at one round table, as well as with safety advocates at another. She hosted a listening session with safety officials, and one with professional drivers. Her journey ended at the Mid-America Trucking Show, where her salute to female truck drivers began at 1 PM EDT at the Kentucky Fair and Exp Center on the last day of the show.
The NTSB formed in 1967 with strong ties to the U.S. Department of Transportation. In 1975, the Independent Safety Board Act severed those ties and exists today as an independent organization that gets its authority from U.S. Code Title 49-Subtitle 11 – Chapter 11. The organization’s main purpose is to investigate accidents that happen on land or in the air, but safety and the prevention of accidents is a main goal and focus. Terms of office last five years, so Hersman will hold her title until July of 2014.
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