WASHINGTON — An owner-operator-backed bill aimed at preventing a speed mandate for trucks is getting heavy pushback from safety groups aligning with small-business trucking’s big-business competition.
A coalition that includes Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, the Truck Safety Coalition, the National Safety Council (NSC) and Road Safe America are lobbying lawmakers to oppose the Deregulating Restrictions on Interstate Vehicles and Eighteen Wheelers Act, known as the DRIVE Act, which was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives earlier this month.
The proposal, which would prohibit the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration from issuing a planned rulemaking requiring trucks to be outfitted with speed governor devices, was immediately opposed by the American Trucking Associations, whose members — many of them — have already invested in such devices for their fleets.
Safety groups are aligning with major trucking companies, warning that the bill would be a major setback at a time when fatalities from truck crashes are on the rise.
“Since 2009, truck crash deaths have increased by 71% with over 5,700 lives lost and nearly 155,000 injured in 2021 (the most recent year for which data is available),” the groups state in a letter to the leaders of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. “Fatalities to large truck occupants (largely truck drivers) surged past 1,000 for the first time in nearly 40 years.”
The coalition, which also includes The Trucking Alliance, a group backed by major truckload carriers, and The Road to Zero Coalition, an NSC-managed coalition of cities, counties and state governmental agencies, points out that “arbitrarily stopping FMCSA from this rulemaking process would compromise the agency from pursuing its stated mission — to reduce large truck crash injuries and fatalities.”
According to a recent Trucking Alliance survey, 98% of the 62,000 trucks operated by the group’s member carriers use speed limiter technology, they told lawmakers, with maximum speed settings ranging from 61 mph to 70 mph.
In addition to safety benefits, members of the coalition point to economic advantages of installing speed limiters on fleets.
“Aside from the research that shows speed limiters to be highly effective at reducing high-speed collisions, there is ample real-world use by leading trucking companies that show speed limiters diminish a company’s crashes and improve their profits,” said Road Safe America Co-Founder Steve Owings in a separate statement, referring presumably to money saved by reduced fuel use and other cost savings.
Speed limiters were a topic of debate at a Capitol Hill hearing this week. Lewie Pugh, executive vice president of the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association, which backs the legislation, argued that studies find having different speed requirements for cars and trucks make the roads less safe. In addition, slowing down goods movement will require more trucks to move the same amount of freight, adding to congestion, Pugh said.
Asked to comment on the coalition forming against the bill, OOIDA underscored the potential for more accidents resulting from speed differentials.
“Nobody cares about road safety more than truck drivers,” said OOIDA President and CEO Todd Spencer in a statement.
“Truckers know this mandate will take safety in the wrong direction. The most significant step the trucking industry could take to improve road safety is to keep experienced, safe drivers in the workforce, so we challenge those who signed this letter to work with us on increasing driver compensation, ensuring restroom access, and expanding truck parking.”
Alex Fusco
Speed limiters are not the answer. They will cause more wrecks because you will have trucks governed at different speeds. This will make it difficult for a faster truck to pass a slower one, especially if the passing truck is only a few miles per hour faster than the slower one. It will cause traffic to back up behind the passing truck worse than it does now. Setting the limiter at a maximum of 70 mph will also cause more accidents, especially in states where the speed limits are 75-80 mph. If you want to keep accidents down, enforce speeding, cell phone use, and distracted driving, especially for cars. I see way more cars doing this than trucks. And raise the fines for these violations as much as it is for truckers. I bet more folks might slow down after getting a ticket for almost double what the fine is now.
Richard M. Rehmer
It kills me that they are looking at speed as the main reason for causing crashes, yet the number one thing causing drivers to go faster is racing the stupid EDL. Wake up. You reduce a truck’s speed, and You create a hazard for the stupid automobiles that are driving many times faster than the trucks. But the so-called experts that many have never even stepped into a truck are the ones calling the shots on trucks. Speed limiters will cause far more truck-car crashes wait and see. EDL causes the majority of the crashes but the FMCSA will never allow that data to see the light of day
diane roche
First the 18 wheelers. Next the straight trucks .Followed by 4 wheels and finally 2 wheels. Wether on a race track or public highways most dangerous situations involve traffic speed differences.
Brent Allen Dodge
In all recent crash studies I would have to guess that they don’t even take in to consideration that the electronic and log rules play a major role in the accident having all the gadgets in the drivers view along with improper training them, if study would be done most of these accidents are with trucks with speed limiters already on them. These driver do not slow down for anything so they can get in their miles for the company they drive for, as a driver that drives a ungoverned truck all I have come across these driver are not paying attention to driving either they’re looking at the ELD or GPS and I see a lot of them watching videos well driving. Speed limiters is not going to stop anything just tie up traffic
Boyd Shackelford
I think it will be more trouble than it worth putting in speed limiters. it will cause more congestion and more road rage from four wheeler.have companies do better training.company like swift.wener and c.r.englamd let’s driver train after beening on the road for 6 months.they don’t know what they are doing in 6 months let alone train someone else.
Bruce
This makes as much sense as gun bans at this point.
The speed limiters are the white and black signs on the shoulder of the road in each individual state. Trucking in Montana is not the same as trucking in Washington DC.
Glenn
Lol,, if ya want trucks side by side holding up traffic worse than what it is now put speed limiters on them , not to mention how many people will quit and not put up with this nonsense. Leave us alone!!
David J Mehrens
Davemehrens@hotmail.com. if you want to lower the speed limits you to enforcing the speed limit on four wheelers and put more law enforcement on the highway there should be no speed limit over 70mph!! Who gave the rights to states to set their own speed limits? Then these states with split speed limit was suppose to change years ago but it never happened