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Industry Groups Sign Off on
Significant Changes Made to UIIA

Last Piece of Roadability Puzzle Finally Slips Into Place

Greenbelt, MD, October 6, 2004 — On September 29, 2004, the Intermodal Interchange Executive Committee (IIEC) approved important changes to the indemnity provisions of the Uniform Intermodal Interchange and Facilities Access Agreement (UIIA). The IIEC, comprised of motor carriers, steamship lines and railroads, is the industry group within the Intermodal Association of North America (IANA) that administers the UIIA.

These significant revisions will allocate responsibility for latent equipment defects to equipment providers (railroad and ocean carriers and equipment leasing companies) and hold these providers accountable for their negligent acts. In turn, motor carriers will become responsible for performing a pre-trip inspection of specific equipment components prior to using the equipment. This exercise will be conducted as part of the federally-mandated walk-around inspection that drivers are required to make.

Until last week, indemnification language had proven to be a major stumbling block to the development of a private sector solution to the roadability issue. Now, in tandem with the recently implemented Systematic Maintenance Check (SMC) Program that is being tested in Baltimore, MD, the remaining pieces of the roadability solution are finally in place.

Credit for this achievement goes to members of a special IANA Indemnity Task Force that worked on this issue over the last year, and to the IIEC members for their diligence in establishing the specific UIIA application. “We could not have reached this industry consensus without the commitment and tenacity of the Task Force and Committee members,” said Joni Casey, IANA president and chief executive officer. “When others walked away, these folks worked countless hours and stayed at the table to get it done.”

Casey also noted that particular recognition should go to key industry leaders who represented their respective modal trade associations, the American Trucking Associations (ATA), the Ocean Carriers Equipment Management Association (OCEMA) and the Association of American Railroads (AAR) and stayed the course over the last several years while the debates wore on. They are Greg Stefflre, CEO of Imagine! Transport Group; Scott Smith, of APL Ltd.; and, Barry Michaels, of the Union Pacific Railroad. “The on-going work by numerous dedicated individuals from all modes has paid off by creating a private sector solution that we can all live with,” said Scott Smith. “This shared solution is the first of its kind for our industry.”

According to Greg Stefflre, “The adoption of this revised indemnity language is a milestone for motor carriers in achieving interchange equity. I hope we can maintain the momentum as we deal with other aspects of shared responsibility.”

“I commend my industry partners for working together to solve this issue,” said IANA Chair, Barry Michaels. “This was a private sector problem that needed industry resolution, not government intervention.”

Rank and file participants in the UIIA will have an opportunity shortly to review the changes to the Agreement, and provide comments on the specific language. The new provisions are expected to become effective in January 2005. (For more information contact IANA at (301) 982-3400.)

IANA is North America's leading industry trade association representing the combined interests of the intermodal freight industry. IANA's membership includes railroads, water carriers and stacktrain operators; port authorities; intermodal truckers and over-the-road highway carriers; intermodal marketing and logistics companies; and suppliers to the industry such as equipment manufacturers, intermodal leasing companies and consulting firms. IANA's associate members include shippers, academic institutions, government entities and non-profit associations.