OOIDA wants proposed underride guard mandate braked

   The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) told House lawmakers in a letter this week that it opposes the proposed Stop Underrides Act (H.R. 1511) bill to mandate underride guards on all sides of commercial motor vehicles over 10,000 pounds. 
   The association, which represents the nation’s smaller trucking operations, warned that the measure would “yield little if any safety benefit, while costing truckers billions [of dollars] to comply.”
  The installation of guards also would create challenges for truckers navigating grade crossings and high curbs, backing in to sloped loading docks, properly utilizing spread-axle trailer configurations, conducting DOT-required trailer inspections and accessing vital equipment located under the trailer — such as brakes, the association said.
   OOIDA had opposed similar legislation introduced a year ago.
   During the past several decades, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has considered numerous options involving underride guards, but has consistently concluded federal mandates would be impractical and expensive, outweighing the possible safety benefits, OOIDA noted in its letter. 
   “To be clear, OOIDA supports efforts to improve highway safety. In fact, we agree the existing rear underride guard on trailers — commonly referred to as a ‘DOT bumper’ in the United States — could be enhanced to reduce the risk of rear underrides for personal automobiles. If the Canadian standard was applied in the U.S. on the manufacture of new trailers, we would not oppose it,” wrote Todd Spencer, OOIDA’s president and CEO.