Alabama Hardens Steel Transport

Trucking companies hauling steel coil in Alabama must use specially certified drivers or face fines of up to $10,000. Uncertified drivers could face fines of up to $1,000 and a year in jail.

The “steel coil bill,” four years in the making, was signed into law by Alabama Governor Robert Riley March 23 at a U.S. Steel plant in Birmingham. The Alabama Department of Public Safety is charged with setting the training standards.

“When you think of the massive destructive force that’s unleashed when a 46,000 pound steel coil tears loose and starts rolling down the highway, it’s amazing no one was ever killed by one,” Riley said at the signing ceremony. “We thank God for that.”

About 30 coils have come loose from transport trucks on Birmingham-area interstates since 1987, according to the state. No deaths resulted, but highway repair costs have totaled more than $7 million.

Alabama Trucking Association officials have advocated tougher penalties for companies and drivers failing to properly secure steel coils to flatbed trailers.

“Our Association believes that this legislation…is the toughest load securement legislation in the nation,” said association Chairman T.J. Willings.