NTSB’s 10 Most Wanted List – 2012

Kelly Messerschmidt
Technical Communications Manager
MSC

Each year the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) releases a list of 10 most-wanted safety improvements. The agency’s annual list is intended to increase awareness and support for the most critical changes necessary for reducing traffic accidents.

The following are a few of the advocacy priorities that appear on this year’s list:

Eliminate Distraction in Transportation
The NTSB suggests that states and regulators ban the nonessential use of portable electronic devices that don’t directly support a driving-related task. The agency suggests that manufacturers develop technology that disables portable electronic devices within reach of the driver. They also point out that young drivers are especially likely to use portable electronic devices (such as cell phones) when driving, and that antidistraction campaigns specifically directed at teens are important.

Mandate Motor Vehicle Collision Avoidance Technologies
Technologies such as electronic stability control, lane departure warning, and forward collision warning exist to help improve drivers’ reaction time and aid drivers when an unexpected driving condition occurs. Despite the availability of these and other technologies, some are not required or mandated. The NTSB purports that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) should establish standards and mandate certain technologies as standard equipment in cars and commercial motor vehicles.

Improve the Safety of Bus Operations
The NTSB puts forth that an important step in improving the safety of bus operations is ensuring that professional motorcoach drivers are qualified. Methods of helping ensure that a driver can be considered "qualified" include longer and more comprehensive reviews of their driving history, maintaining higher expectations and standards as far as drivers’ undergoing regular medical exams, and limiting drivers’ hours of service.

In addition to these most-wanted improvements, the NTSB lists safety improvements in areas including aviation, rail, and infrastructure.

Read more about NTSB’s most-wanted safety improvements at the agency's website. 

FMCSA Releases Research on Benefits of Speed Limiters in Large Trucks

Benjamin Smith
Principal Technical Analyst
MSC MS

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) released research this week on the benefits of using speed limiters (SLs), also known as speed governors, in large trucks. For more information, view the FMCSA's document, titled "Speed-Limiters."

SLs are a technology that allows trucking fleets or truck owners to program a preset maximum speed of travel. Many trucking fleets use SLs not only to increase safety by reducing their trucks’ top speed, but also to reduce tire wear, extend the life of the brakes and engine, improve fuel economy, and so on.

In January 2011, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) proposed limiting the speed of all heavy trucks to 68mph. NHTSA stated its intent to initiate the rulemaking process on this issue in 2012. Read NHTSA's notice in the Jan. 3, 2011 Federal Register.

Viewpoints differ on the issue of mandating the use of SLs in heavy trucks. Agencies and groups such as the American Trucking Associations (ATA), Road Safe America, and the Truckload Carriers Association, have stated their support for SLs in large trucks for reasons including reduced severity of crashes and various economic benefits. However, critics of government-mandated SLs, such as the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA), have stated their opposition for reasons such as the potential for speed-governed trucks to become “rolling roadblocks” when operating in faster flows of traffic.

Research published in the American Journal of Public Health in March 2009, titled “The Effect of State Regulations on Truck-Crash Fatalities,” examines the effects of certain traffic safety policies and restrictions on fatality rates in truck-involved crashes.

Transportation Safety in the News

The first three weeks of June have had more than their share of big news items related to transportation. Most interesting (and personally most encouraging) is the announcement of the American Trucking Association's 18 Point Safety Agenda. The agenda includes recommendations for improvements in Driver, Vehicle, and Motor Carrier performance.

If your opinion of the American trucking industry is still being influenced by Smokey and the Bandit (no disrespect to the movie!), take a minute to read the ATA's recommendations. They include mandatory speed limiters ("governors") set at 65mph and primary seat belt enforcement laws.

However, not everyone is behind the recommendations. The Owner Operator and Independent Driver Association (OOIDA) opposes the speed limiter provision. The link above (to TheTruckerDOTcom) includes OOIDA's statements, too.

Other important news already this month has included the release of NHTSA's Fatalites and Injuries in Motor Vehicle Backing Crashes, a comprehensive study of what causes and contributes to backing crashes on US highways and private parking lots. One of NHTSA's significant findings was confirmation that children under 5 years of age and adults over 70 years of age have an elevated risk of being injured in backing collisions.

Perhaps the most significant news came in the form of a 90-page white paper from the Chairman of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, James Oberstar (D-MN). The paper is a blueprint for the Surface Transportation Authorization Act of 2009, and it explicitly recommends making EOBR technology mandatory for the entire trucking industry. More information about the Surface Transportation Authorization Act of 2009 is available from the US House of Representatives' website.