About 12.6% of Vehicles Inspected Placed Out of Service
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Roughly one of every eight trucks inspected for brake-related violations was placed out of service by commercial vehicle inspectors during Brake Safety Week in August, the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance reported.
In total, inspectors in Canada, Mexico and the United States conducted 18,875 commercial motor vehicle inspections during the Aug. 20-26 special enforcement effort, CVSA said. Roughly 87.4% of vehicles checked did not have any brake-related out-of-service violations.
However, 2,375 (12.6%) were removed from roadways because inspectors discovered brake-related out-of-service violations.
Commercial motor vehicles are placed out of service — meaning restricted from further travel until repairs are made — when an inspector identifies critical vehicle inspection item violations, according to the inspector organization’s North American Standard Out-of-Service Criteria.
We released the results from Brake Safety Week yesterday. Of the 2,375 CMVs placed out of service, 295 (12.4%) had steering axle brake violations, 1,127 (47.5%) had stand-alone brake violations and 1,394 (58.7%) failed the 20% defective brakes criterion.https://t.co/S3T7kZbuoq — CVSA (@CVSA) October 18, 2023
Some examples of brake-related out-of-service violations that automatically place the vehicle out of service include broken brake drums, loose air tanks, corroded holes in a spring brake housing, and inoperative tractor protection valves. Service brake violations, such as cracked linings, brake adjustment or loose chambers, may combine to put the combination of vehicles out of service under the 20% brake criterion. Certain service brake violations are automatically placed out of service when found on the steering axle.
Of the 2,375 commercial motor vehicles that were placed out of service, 295 (12.4%) had steering axle brake violations, 1,127 (47.5%) had stand-alone brake violations and 1,394 (58.7%) failed the 20% defective brakes criterion, which requires that a vehicle is out of service if the number of defective brakes is equal to or greater than 20% of the service brakes on the vehicle or combination.
The special focus area for this year’s Brake Safety Week was lining/pad violations. Throughout the week, and just as they do normally when inspecting the vehicle components of commercial motor vehicles, inspectors checked brake lining/pads for cracks, voids and contamination. They also looked for loose, missing or worn brake lining/pads. A total of 379 power (tractor) units and 261 towed (trailer) units had lining/pad violations.
A total of 56 U.S. and Canadian states/provinces and territories and Mexico participated in this year’s Brake Safety Week.
The special focus area for this year’s Brake Safety Week was lining/pad violations. (CVSA)
In Canada, 1,327 commercial motor vehicles were inspected, and 10% or 134 had brake-related out-of-service violations. A total of 26 power units and 25 towed units had lining/pad violations.
In Mexico, nine commercial motor vehicles were inspected, with only one (11%) placed out of service for brake-related violations. Lining/pad violations were identified on one power unit.
In the U.S., of the 18,031 commercial motor vehicles inspected, 2,240 (12.4%) had brake-related out-of-service violations. There were lining/pad violations on 352 power units and 236 towed units.
Brake Safety Week is part of CVSA’s Operation Airbrake Program, a comprehensive program dedicated to improving commercial motor vehicle brake safety throughout North America. The goal is to reduce the number of crashes caused by faulty braking systems on commercial motor vehicles by conducting roadside inspections and educating drivers, mechanics, owner-operators and others on the importance of proper brake inspection, maintenance and operation.
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Next year’s Brake Safety Week is scheduled for Aug. 25-31.
By being transparent, CVSA aims to remind drivers and motor carriers to take proactive steps to ensure their commercial motor vehicles are safe and compliant with Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations.
In 2022, commercial motor vehicle inspectors in Canada, Mexico and the U.S. conducted 38,117 inspections of commercial motor vehicles for Brake Safety Week. Of the total number of the commercial motor vehicles inspected, 13.3% were placed out of service for brake-related critical vehicle inspection item violations.
