The FMCSA has put Vermont-based Land Air Express out of service, making it possibly the largest trucking company shut down ever conducted by the agency.
According to a statement from the FMCSA, Land Air Express received notice of an unsatisfactory safety rating in late October. The FMCSA gave the company 60 days to either submit a plan to increase safety or to appeal the rating. Because Land Air Express failed to act within the allotted 60 days, they were placed out of service on December 29.
The president of Land Air Express, William Spencer, says that he hopes the company’s trucks will be back on the road soon, but the company is waiting for guidance from the FMCSA. Spencer says that the company applied for an extension of the 60-day deadline but was told that the FMCSA does not grant extensions.
According to the FMCSA, within the last 24 months, the company has received 327 inspections and has been involved in 49 crashes.
The out of service order is considered unusual because of the size of Land Air Express and the FMCSA’s relatively quiet treatment of the matter.
Land-Air Express operates with 330 trucks and 344 truck drivers in 8 states.
Sources:
DC Velocity
Journal of Commerce