
The following bulletin was forwarded to Overdrive from the desk of Trans Products Trans Services Regulatory Manager Richard Wilson.
Santa has a neck with a circumference greater than 17.5 inches, with a body mass index measurement well north of 35, and he has not taken a 10-hour break before starting his run because he’s been hard at work checking his list twice and seeing who’s naughty and nice — these kinds of activities are classifiable as on-duty not driving, therefore Santa has more than exhausted his 14-hour clock. Regulators have deemed Santa an imminent hazard to the motoring public and ordered Claus to cease operations effective immediately, for these and other reasons (his CSA scores: through the roof, his sleigh: overdue for an annual inspection).
If the Claus operation can develop a suitable cooperative safety plan and implement it with regulators, perhaps next year Christmas will come on time.
Merry Christmas from the FMCSA!
Editor’s note: Children, do not despair. Overdrive editors suspect that, given the global nature of Santa’s operations, unlike the vast majority of U.S. carriers, Claus will find a way to make it happen. In the words of one legal advisor, also, “the FMCSA does not have jurisdiction over the airlanes and rooftops of the U.S. of A.”