Inspectors will be out in force Tuesday through Thursday

May 16, 2022

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Starting Tuesday, May 17, be on the lookout for teams of inspectors pulling trucks over for the annual International Roadcheck safety inspection blitz.

International Roadcheck runs Tuesday through Thursday, May 17-19. The annual 72-hour high-visibility, high-volume commercial motor vehicle inspection and enforcement initiative is sponsored by the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance. Commercial motor vehicle inspectors in Canada, Mexico and the U.S. will conduct North American Standard Inspections of commercial motor vehicles and drivers at weigh and inspection stations, on roving patrols, and at temporary inspection sites.

More than 40,000 commercial motor vehicle were inspected during last May’s inspection blitz. Inspections can tie up from 15 minutes to a couple of hours of a driver’s time.

On Friday, Land Line presented some data from DAT MembersEdge – a service provided exclusively to OOIDA members at a discounted price – that showed that some drivers may be opting to get their truck maintenance or spend some time at home during International Roadcheck.

Last year, well over 80% of the vehicles inspected during International Roadcheck passed. CVSA decals were placed on 9,951 power units. CVSA says about 15 trucks or buses are inspected on average every minute during the three-day event.

International Roadcheck 2022 emphasis on wheel ends

Each year, CVSA focuses on a specific aspect of a roadside inspection. This year, there will be an emphasis on wheel ends, according to a news release.

Wheel end components support the heavy loads carried by commercial motor vehicles, maintain stability and control. They are critical for braking. Violations involving wheel end components historically account for about a quarter of the vehicle out-of-service violations discovered during International Roadcheck. It has ranked in the top 10 vehicle violations in past International Roadcheck events.

During Roadcheck, commercial motor vehicle inspectors examine large trucks and motor coaches and the driver’s documentation and credentials using CVSA’s North American Standard Inspection Program procedures. They are the uniform inspection steps, processes and standards established to ensure consistency in compliance, inspections and enforcement. Using the North American Standard Out-of-Service Criteria, also established by CVSA, inspectors identify critical out-of-service violations that if found, require the inspector to restrict the driver or vehicle from travel until those violations or conditions are addressed.

Vehicles that successfully pass a North American Standard Level I or Level V Inspection without any critical vehicle inspection item violations may receive a CVSA decal. In general, a vehicle with a valid CVSA decal will not be re-inspected during the three months while the decal is valid. Instead, inspectors will focus their efforts on vehicles without a valid CVSA decal.

The U.S. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, the Canadian Council of Motor Transport Administrators, Transport Canada, and Mexico’s Ministry of Infrastructure, Communications and Transportation all participate in International Roadcheck.