Do you want to share the road with trucks which have bent, rusty, or cracked rear underride guards — making an already-weak protective device even weaker when not properly maintained?
That is the current reality on our roads. So we are encouraged by CVSA’s response to our request that they add underride guards to their commercial vehicle inspections:
“There are currently 15 items on the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA) out-of-service criteria that render a commercial motor vehicle operator unqualified to drive if their trucks do not meet CVSA standards,” the [Senator Gillibrand & Senator Rubio letter to CVSA] said. “This list includes lighting devices, windshield, wipers and frame of the vehicle.”
But not underride guards!
The Stop Underrides Act (S. 2219) has been referred to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation.
In the meantime, the two lawmakers also have asked CVSA to consider upgrading the standard for rear guards with cracks, rust or corrosion to be placed out-of-service.
“We’ve been requested to look at them to see whether or not they belong in the out-of-service criteria,” Kerri Wirachowsky, director of CVSA’s roadside inspection program, told Transport Topics. “Maybe, maybe not. But before we go that far we need to see what is out there and what the condition of them are.”
Although there are federal requirements on size, placement and condition of the rear underguards, CVSA does not have a handle on how vigorously inspectors are checking the underguards or issuing violations when they’re “beat up, bent or have lost bolts,” Wirachowsky said. CVSA Responds to Senators Deciding to Spend a Day Inspecting Underride Guards, August 15, 2018, Transport Topics
On February 13, 2019, WUSA9 reported on the results of that August 27-31, 2018, CVSA underride inspection project. Big changes coming to big rig risks, WUSA9, February 13, 2019
. . . our investigation uncovered many of those rear guards don’t measure up, and worse, hold up in accidents.
Now we’ve discovered the inspectors responsible for red-flagging dangerous rear guards, have very little power to do much about it.
As a result [of the underride inspection project], CVSA is now making major changes.
- It’s retraining road-side inspectors to check rear guards.
- Asking the federal government to tighten the rules on rear guard inspections.
- Effective immediately: the CVSA is increasing training on how to inspect rear guards.
- Adding it to the agency’s critical inspection item list.
- Prohibiting inspectors from giving CVSA approved decal to any vehicle that doesn’t meet rear guard requirements.
The decals allow trailers, who have passed inspection, to roll through these stations without getting looked at again.
Meanwhile, other proposed changes will require federal approval, including adding faulty rear guards to list of things that can result in a trailer being pulled off the road, and adding rear guards to the check list trucks must meet to pass annual inspections. {* See footnote.}
The Stop Underrides Act would go even farther than the safety improvements the CVSA is now recommending. Major changes to stop underride accidents could be coming to US highways, WUSA9, February 13, 2019
We are also thankful to CVSA for their work with FMCSA on the recently published training video on the vehicle inspection process. This process now includes inspection of the rear end protection device (although I hope that they update the video with more details of what to look for, along with photos with examples of guards which don’t pass inspection).
VIDEO: A step-by-step review of a North American Standard (NAS) Level 1 inspection – narrated from the perspective of the commercial driver
* Hint, hint, hint, FMCSA. On November 1, 2018, we submitted a petition to FMCSA Administrator Martinez, asking that you add underride protection to Out-Of-Service items in Appendix G. We are still waiting for a decision.
Letter from FMCSA in response to our petition
