All of these changes, designed to improve the public’s perception of the industry, can only be good for operators around the country who provide top-notch services to millions of passengers each year.

Bill includes N.Y. Sen. Charles Schumer’s well-publicized “Grading System,” changes in how safety measures will be implemented and how the industry does business with public transit agencies.

SaferBus provides access to safety records on approximately 6,000 interstate commercial passenger carriers operating in the U.S., which includes privately operated motorcoach, school bus and tour bus companies.

As part of the U.S. Department of Transportation’s quest to make motorcoach travel safer, the FMCSA has begun conducting listening sessions to solicit concepts, ideas and information. The first such session was held at the ABA’s Marketplace in January.

About 1 percent of all buses suffer some form of fire incident each year. For many years, the SP Technical Research Institute of Sweden has been at the forefront of research on improving bus fire safety. The organization has an ongoing project with the intention of creating an international standard for fire suppression systems in engine compartments of buses and coaches.

The proposed rule EOBR rule also would eliminate the need for motor carriers to retain certain HOS supporting documents, such as delivery and toll receipts, which are currently used to verify the total number of hours drivers spend operating the vehicle.

New programs and proposed rulemaking, such as the FMCSA's CSA program and NHTSA's seat belt rule, are putting the pressure on carriers to take a long, hard look at improving an already safe industry over the next several years.

Sessions included a discussion by junior operators on finding ways to reach a wider audience as well as how to breathe new life into the industry. On the legislative front, FMCSA Administrator Ferro was on hand to discuss new safety regulation programs.

In light of recent motorcoach collisions caused by unsafe operators, federal agencies and one state in particular are concentrating their efforts to get the bad guys off the road.

The federal agency's CSA2010 program, includes a series of evaluation measurements covering the areas of unsafe driving, drugs and alcohol and driver fitness.