Operation Rapid Shield removes almost 400 trucks, vehicles from US roads - ZH.
The removal was carried out as part of the third phase of Operation Fast Shield, which targets unlicensed truck drivers and related criminal activity on US roads. In addition to removing 393 drivers and vehicles from service, the operation identified 183 English language proficiency violations, referred 74 immigration violations to federal enforcement, made 44 felony arrests and recovered one stolen trailer, the Department of Transportation (DOT) said in a Nov. 4 statement.
"Gone are the days of dangerous — and often illegal and foreign — drivers endangering American lives on our roads," said Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy in a statement. "Under the Trump administration, we are restoring law and order. ".
A total of 1,724 inspections were conducted in 48 hours along Arkansas highways and other major freight corridors during the operation. The first wave of Operation "Quick Shield" was held in Florida in March and led to the removal of 176 drivers from service.
The second phase, held in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa and Ohio in July, resulted in 766 unsafe drivers and vehicles being removed from service.
"The last wave of Operation Magan Hahir pulled over 300 dangerous drivers off the road, including 183 foreign drivers who didn't know how to read road signs," Duffy said. "We are not slowing down when it comes to keeping Americans safe on our roads. ".
The DOT cited the launch of an interagency effort in August to crack down on fraud in the U.S. trucking sector. The effort included the emergency suspension of 110 schools of commercial driving licenses that were linked to more than 5,000 drivers who failed English tests and the notification of another 160 schools.