U.S. DOT proposes device to cap truck speeds

   The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) on Friday announced it will seek to require speed limiting devices on all newly manufactured trucks with a gross vehicle rating more than 26,000 pounds.
   The notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) from the DOT’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is expected to be published Monday in the Federal Register, but a preliminary version was made available to those receiving the news release.
   The safety agencies said they will look to public comments for determining the maximum safe speed at which engine governors should be set. The proposal discusses the benefits of setting the maximum speed at 60, 65 and 68 miles per hour, but the agencies will consider other speeds based on public input.
   The NPRM said controlling truck and bus speeds would save lives and more than $1 billion in fuel costs per year.
   “This is basic physics,” NHTSA Administrator Mark Rosekind said. “Even small increases in speed have large effects on the force of impact. Setting the speed limit on heavy vehicles makes sense for safety and the environment.”
   Motor carriers operating commercial vehicles in interstate commerce would be responsible for maintaining the speed limiting devices at or below the designated speed for the service life of the vehicle under the proposal.
   For the past decade, the American Trucking Associations (ATA) has called for mandatory speed limiters for large trucks to cap speeds at 65 mph.
   The ATA pointed out that driving too fast was the primary reason for 18 percent of all fatal crashes where a large truck was deemed at fault, according to federal data.
   Most ATA member companies install governors on their trucks, although they don’t follow a uniform speed cap. Many large fleets that emphasize compliance complain that independent operators drive fast to move more freight within the daily limit for drivers to be behind the wheel. They view the regulation as a way to force everyone to play by the same rules, thereby leveling the playing field in a competitive freight market. 
  The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association criticized the proposed rule, saying governors create speed differentials that lead to more crashes and promote road rage among other motorists.
The Association also pointed out that speed limit devices take control out of the hands of drivers and that there are scenarios that require drivers to accelerate in order to avoid danger.