NHTSA Focusing on Speed-Limiter Rule
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration plans to pass a rule requiring speed limiters in heavy trucks.

November 06, 2011 /24-7PressRelease/ -- NHTSA Focusing on Speed-Limiter Rule

Nearly five years ago, the American Trucking Association (ATA) and Road Safe America (RSA), both trucking interest groups, petitioned the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to pass a rule requiring electronic control modules, or speed limiters, in heavy trucks. Early this year, the NHTSA granted the petitions and announced it will begin the rulemaking process in 2012, although this does not guarantee that a mandate will actually be issued.

A speed limiter is a tamper-resistant device that is set to control the maximum speed at which a truck can travel. The request was made by ATA, RSA, and nine truck carrier fleets, that the top speed be limited to 68 miles per hour.

The groups believe that limiting the speed of big trucks will increase safety on the highways. Nearly 5,000 people die every year in crashes involving large commercial vehicles, and according to the NHTSA, speed is a factor in one-third of all accidents.

But even when the crash isn't fatal, accidents involving trucks driving at higher speeds often cause more serious injuries than lower speed accidents. Faster-driving trucks require more time to stop; needing 20 to 40 percent more distance to brake than smaller vehicles traveling at the same speed.

To further this theory, Schneider National, one of the trucking carriers supporting the rule, points out that before all of its trucks were speed-limited, trucks without the devices drove only 17 percent of the company's total driving time, yet were responsible for 40 percent of the serious crashes.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety is also in favor of the proposed regulation, citing the fact that speed limiters will work to enforce speed control in areas that do not have resources to monitor the speed limit. Additionally, according to the Truck Maintenance Council, reducing the speed of heavy trucks may decrease fuel consumption and increase tire tread life.

While opponents of the proposal believe the devices will actually cause more accidents because of the speed differential, both the United Kingdom and Australia noticed a significant decrease in fatalities involving trucks since speed governing devices were introduced. So far, the U.S. has fallen behind the curve, with Europe, Australia, Japan, and parts of Canada already using speed limiters.

The speed limiter rule, if adopted, may reduce the likelihood of accidents, but will not eliminate them. For those who have been injured or lost a family member in a trucking accident, it is important to speak with an attorney about your situation.

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