FMCSA Audience Research - Online Focus Groups

FMCSA Stakeholder Audience Research

Motor Carrier Industry: Bulletin Boards Screener

Recruiting Goals

Two bulletin boards of 24 recruits:

• One Board of Corporate Officers, made up of

  • N=10 Trucking Executives

  • N=10 Trucking Safety Officers

  • N=2 Bus or Passenger Carrying Vehicle Executives

  • N=2 Bus or Passenger Carrying Vehicle Safety Officers

• One Board of Drivers, made up of

  • N=6 Bus or Passenger Carrying Vehicle Drivers

  • N=6 Truck Drivers at Mid-to-Large Companies

  • N=6 Truck Drivers at Small Companies

  • N=6 Owner-Operator Independent Truck Drivers

Introduction

Good morning/afternoon/evening, my name is __________ and I’m calling from [NAME OF COMPANY/ORGANIZATION]. We’re solely conducting research, and I am not selling anything nor will you be asked to sign up for or purchase anything. We are looking for individuals to participate in an online discussion group to talk about the motor carrier industry and issues that could be important to you. We are only interested in your opinions. Participants will be offered a total incentive of $150 for your full participation. For five days one week, you will need to visit an online discussion board a few times to share your thoughts.

Would you be interested in participating in this research?

1. Yes

2. No [TERMINATE]

Great. I have a few initial questions just to determine in which group you may fit.

1. First, do you work any of the following industries: trucking, bus or other passenger carrying vehicles? By “other passenger carrying vehicles” we mean vehicles that can transport more than 8 passengers at a time. [SELECT ALL THAT APPLY]

   1. Yes, trucking

   2. Yes, bus

   3. Yes, other passenger carrying vehicle

   4. No, none of these [TERMINATE]

[ASK IF Q1=C]

1A. What other passenger carrying vehicle(s) do you operate or manage?

[ASK OPEN, IF Q1=C ONLY, COMPLETE SCREENING AND HOLD FOR REVIEW]

[ASK IF Q1=A AND B OR Q1=A AND C]

2. Which sector would you say you work in more frequently?

   1. Trucking more frequently

   2. Bus more frequently

   3. Other passenger carrying vehicle more frequently

   4. Trucking and bus equally

   5. Trucking and other passenger carrying vehicle equally

3. Which of the following best describes what you do within the trucking, bus or other passenger carrying vehicle industry?

   1. I am a driver [SKIP TO Q4]

   2. I work in a corporate or regional office [SKIP TO Q8]

DRIVER SECTION

4. Do you keep log books, either in a physical book or recorded electronically, under the hours of service (HOS) regulations?

   1. Yes, physical book

   2. Yes, electronically

   3. No [TERMINATE]

5. Which of the following classes include the type of vehicles you drive? Please select all that apply. [GET A MIX]

   1. Class 1 – up to 6,000 pounds

   2. Class 2a/2b – 6,001 to 10,000 pounds

   3. Class 3 – 10,001 to 14,000 pounds

   4. Class 4 – 14,001 to 16,000 pounds

   5. Class 5 – 16,001 to 19,500 pounds

   6. Class 6 – 19,501 to 26,000 pounds

   7. Class 7 – 26,001 to 33,000 pounds

   8. Class 8 – more than 33,000 pounds

[ASK IF Q1=A OR Q2=A/C]

6. How would you describe the cargo you typically haul?

[ASK OPEN, RECORD RESPONSE, GET MIX]

7. Do you work for a company or are you an independent owner/operator?

   1. Work for a company [SKIP TO Q12]

   2. Independent owner/operator [SKIP TO Q12]

INDUSTRY SECTION

8. What is your title or position? [ASK OPEN, RECORD AND CLASSIFY IF MENTION BELOW]

1. President

2. Vice President

3. Chairman

4. Director

5. Chief Executive Officer

6. Chief Operating Officer

7. Manager

8. Safety Officer

9. Do your responsibilities within the company focus on either safety and compliance or the broader management of the company?

1. Safety and compliance

2. Broader management

3. Neither [TERMINATE]

10. Which of the following classes include the type of vehicles in your fleet? Please select all that apply. [GET A MIX]

    1. Class 1 – up to 6,000 pounds

    2. Class 2a/2b – 6,001 to 10,000 pounds

    3. Class 3 – 10,001 to 14,000 pounds

    4. Class 4 – 14,001 to 16,000 pounds

    5. Class 5 – 16,001 to 19,500 pounds

    6. Class 6 – 19,501 to 26,000 pounds

    7. Class 7 – 26,001 to 33,000 pounds

    8. Class 8 – more than 33,000 pounds

[ASK IF Q1=A OR Q2=A/C]

11. How would you describe the cargo you typically haul?

[ASK OPEN, RECORD RESPONSE, GET MIX]

12. Are your routes inter-state, meaning they cross at least one if not more than one state line?

    1. Yes

    2. No [TERMINATE]

13. How many trucks or bus/passenger vehicles are in your fleet?

[ASK OPEN, RECORD NUMBER AND CLASSIFY INTO BELOW]

1. 1 to 5

2. 6 to 10

3. 11 to 25

4. 26 to 50

5. 51 to 99

6. 100 or more

[ASK IF Q3=B]

14. How often do you get safety and compliance information either directly or indirectly from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA)? Would you say…?

    1. You often get safety and compliance information from FMCSA

    2. You sometimes get safety and compliance information FMCSA

    3. You rarely get safety and compliance information from FMCSA

    4. You never get safety and compliance information from FMCSA [TERMINATE]

[ASK IF Q3=A]

15. Do you get safety and compliance information directly from any of the following? Please select all that apply.

    1. A government agency like the Federal Motor Carrier Administration (FMCSA)

    2. An industry association like the American Trucking Association (ATA), the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) or something similar

    3. Internally from the company where you are employed

16. How familiar are you with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA)?

1. Very familiar

2. Somewhat familiar

3. Somewhat unfamiliar

4. Very unfamiliar [IF Q15 NOT=A, TERMINATE]

BOARD 1 DEFINITIONS:

• Trucking Executive: Q1/2=A AND Q3=B AND Q8=A/B/C/D/E/F*

• Trucking Safety Officer: Q1/2=A AND Q3=B AND Q9=A

• Bus or Passenger Carrying Vehicle Executive: Q1/2=B/C AND Q3=B AND Q8=A/B/C/D/E/F*

• Bus or Passenger Carrying Vehicle Safety Officer: Q1/2=B/C AND 3=B AND Q9=A

* OTHER RESPONSES HOLD FOR REVIEW

BOARD 2 DEFINITIONS:

• Bus or Passenger Carrying Vehicle Driver: Q1/2=B/C AND Q3=A

• Mid-to-Large Truck Driver: Q1/2=A AND Q3=A AND Q7=A AND Q13=D/E/F

• Small Truck Driver: Q1/2=A AND Q3=A AND Q7=A AND Q13=A/B/C

• Owner-Operator Truck Driver: Q1/2=A AND Q3=A AND Q7=B AND Q13=A/B/C

17. Which of the following regions of the United States do your routes include?

1. New England

2. Mid-Atlantic

3. Great Lakes

4. Great Plains

5. Southeast

6. Southwest

7. Rocky Mountain

8. Pacific

9. Nationwide

18. What state would you consider your “home base” – where your routes tend to begin?

[ASK OPEN AND RECORD]

19. How long have you worked in the trucking or the bus or passenger vehicle industry?

[ASK OPEN, RECORD AND CLASSIFY BELOW; GET A MIX]

1. Less than a year

2. 1 to 2 years

3. 3 to 5 years

4. 5 to 10 years

5. 10 to 20 years

6. More than 20 years

The following questions are for classification purposes only.

ALL QUOTA TARGETS ARE PER EACH BULLETIN BOARD OF 24 RESPONDENTS

20. How old are you? [ASK OPEN AND RECORD CATEGORY]

    1. 18-29 [TARGET 4 TO 6 RECRUITS]

    2. 30-39 [TARGET 4 TO 6 RECRUITS]

    3. 40-49 [TARGET 4 TO 6 RECRUITS]

    4. 50-59 [TARGET 4 TO 6 RECRUITS]

    5. 60+ [TARGET 4 TO 6 RECRUITS]

21. To help us hear from a variety of people, please tell us, do you consider yourself Hispanic or Latino?

1. Yes [TARGET 3 TO 5 RECRUITS PER BOARD]

2. No

22. Which one or more of the following would you say is your race?

1. American Indian or Alaska Native [TARGET 0 TO 2 RECRUITS]

2. Asian [TARGET 2 TO 3 RECRUITS]

3. Black or African-American [TARGET 3 TO 5 RECRUITS]

4. Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander [TARGET 0 TO 2 RECRUITS]

5. Caucasian or White [MAXIMUM OF 15 RECRUITS]

23. [RECORD GENDER -- DO NOT ASK UNLESS YOU ARE NOT SURE]

1. Male [TARGET 19 TO 20 RECRUITS]

2. Female [TARGET 4 TO 5 RECRUITS]

24. Which of the following best describes your total, annual, household income (before taxes)? [GET A MIX PER BOARD]

1. Under $25,000

2. $25,000 to $34,999

3. $35,000 to $49,999

4. $50,000 to $74,999

5. $75,000 to $99,999

6. $100,000 to $124,999

7. $125,000 to $149,999

8. $150,000 or more

Thank you for answering my questions. I would like to tell you a little more about the discussion group. The online discussion will be held on [DATES TBD]. You will join up to 23 other people and a moderator. You will receive $150 for your participation, where you will need to visit an online discussion board a few times to share your thoughts. Over the course of 5 days, you will be asked to log-on to the discussion at least 3 days and participate in the conversation for at least a half hour each day.

Are you still interested in participating?

1. Yes

2. No

Before we hang up, let me get the correct spelling of your name and contact information, so we can reach out to you with a reminder the day of the group.

NAME______________________________

HOME PHONE/CELL PHONE______________________

ADDRESS____________________________________________

E-MAIL______________________

Thanks again for your time!