Tree Service Calls Trucking Violations List Unfair

By Andrew Gorosko

The owner of a Sandy Hook-based tree service, which is listed by the state Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) as among the worst violators of trucking regulations in the state, says that his firm is being unfairly criticized by the state for some technical violations.

Mark Azzarito, the owner of Northeast Tree Service, LLC, of 246 Berkshire Road (Route 34) on August 10 said, “This list is not justified.”

The DMV, however, paints a somewhat different picture.

The list to which Mr Azzarito refers was published recently by the DMV noting the top 25 motor carriers in Connecticut with poor safety ratings, based on accident frequency, driver safety, vehicle safety, and out-of-service rates. That list is based on a Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration analysis of data gathered by the state during the previous 30 months of commercial vehicle inspections.

That list ranks Northeast Tree Service as the third worst violator of the commercial truck safety regulations among the top 25 violators in the state.

Governor M. Jodi Rell had the DMV publish the list of top violators in the aftermath of a 20-vehicle accident in Avon on July 29, which was caused by an out-of-control commercial heavy dump truck. Four people died in that accident and many others were critically injured.

Mr Azzarito said his firm was placed on the trucking violators’ list due to a series of May 2004 commercial vehicle inspections near Exit 11 of Interstate 84, which found that several of  Northeast’s vehicles had registrations that had expired one month earlier.

Cash-flow problems  had prevented him from keeping the vehicles registered, he said. Mr Azzarito said he uses high-quality International-brand bucket trucks for his tree work.

The DMV’s publication of the trucking violations list has generated undue, negative publicity for his firm, he said.

Following those May 2004 inspections, Northeast had its vehicles registered and paid a $2,000 fine for the violations, he said.

Mr Azzarito stressed that “Northeast Tree Service is a safe, licensed tree service,” which has been in business since 1991.

On August 10, Sergeant Donald Bridge, of the DMV’s commercial vehicle safety division, said that DMV statistics indicate Northeast Tree Service has had 55 violations of commercial vehicle regulations during the past 30 months, resulting in its placement near the top of the worst violators list.

Among those various violations, there were no vehicle accidents, Sgt Bridge noted.

Sgt Bridge said the DMV will soon perform complete inspections on Northeast’s operations to check for violations. Hopefully, when such inspections are made, no violations will be found, he said.

The purpose of commercial vehicle violations is to reduce motor vehicle accidents, he said.