Trucking Speed Limits proposal by NHTSA under Consideration

Keeping in mind the trucker safety and there requests National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has said it will work towards the rule proposal through which the truck manufacturer companies will have to install a mechanism or device which will limit the driving speed of the heavy trucks to 68 mph. This will be brought to effect by 2012.
American Trucking Association and Road Safe America has made a petition to give this rule a way so that the truck accidents which are caused by the speeding factors could be limited and the truck drivers job could be made more safe. These petitions were granted by NHTSA in the Federal Register posting which was conducted last week. Though the NHTSA has granted ATA and Road Safe America petitions that does not mean the final rule regarding the speed limit is issued. NHTSA further laid emphasis on two studies conducted which suggests that these speed limiting device has the potential to decrease the severity of crash.
Bill Graves, ATA president said they are happy that there petition will be soon considered and a rule will be implemented. The petition was first filed by ATA to Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in October 2006. The safety on the road can be increased when the traffic on the road is slowed down the ATA president said we tried to do this on our part for the sake of the trucking industry.
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Now everybody knows that with the restrictions on the trucking speed limit the number of speed related crash will be reduced. However the rule is not implemented yet as the FMCSA is conducting studies on the economic effects of the introduction of this speed limiting rule. The reports from this study will be open to public in 90 days.
The fuel efficiency will surely be affected when the truck speed is less than 68mph. But one can obviously compromise on fuel efficiency where the truck driver life and safety is concerned. Many other industrialized countries have already implemented this rule and there can be noticed a drastic reduction in the accidents caused due to speeding. From the Schneider carrier company’s internal crash reports it is evident that the trucks with no speed limiters accounts for 40% of the total serious collisions. So there is a great need of this rule to be implemented in United States also.
Where this proposal is welcomed by many, there are some trucking companies and owner operators who say such decision is more likely to increase the risk as all the vehicles on the highway should run on the same speed and the varied speed causes more accidents. Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association says setting the speed limit will not reduce the number of accidents on the highways. Other aspect against the speed limiters is that with slow moving trucks there will be increased congestion on the US highways thus affecting the overall productivity of the trucking companies. This will in turn delay the dispatch service of the available loads.
With the mixed views and suggestions NHTSA is strong in making way to the proposal to set speed limiters for trucks.