Cart before the horse?

In recent OOIDA Foundation surveys, truck drivers have voiced their concerns regarding automatic emergency braking systems.

Truckers have cited false activations and an inability to trust the technology among the reasons for their skepticism.

However, those concerns have not stopped some lawmakers from looking at an automatic emergency braking mandate as being some sort of magic bullet for highway safety.

As of press time, versions of a highway bill in the House and Senate included provisions that moved toward requiring automatic emergency braking systems to be equipped on all new heavy-duty trucks.

OOIDA contends that lawmakers are going about this in the wrong order. First, the technology must be perfected. Once that happens, the Association says, there will be no need for a mandate because the technology will be in high demand.

“We’re trying to make members of the Senate and House understand that if they ultimately want to have AEB technology on every truck on the road, then they need to do the work to ensure that the technology is reliable and that it works effectively before they put the cart before the horse,” Collin Long, OOIDA’s director of government affairs, told Land Line Now. “There is a reasonable way to do this, and taking into account the views of truckers should be a key element to that. Because they are the ones who are going to be using it, and they are the ones who are most commonly going to experience the problems.”

According to the OOIDA Foundation, member surveys have revealed that truck drivers are concerned that sudden braking will cause more vehicles to rear-end the trailer as following vehicles wouldn’t expect for the tractor-trailer to hit the brakes.

Other members have mentioned inclement weather and concerns over sudden braking in icy or slippery conditions causing the driver to lose control of the vehicle. Truckers point out that there are times when it is better to speed up rather than hit the brakes in order to avoid a collision.

An automatic emergency braking system mandate causes particular concern among tanker drivers. Any sudden braking can cause the liquid inside a tanker to slosh, and the movement can create a strong surge causing the driver to lose control of the vehicle. According to the surveys, this is most concerning when the driver doesn’t expect the surge and when the tanker isn’t fully loaded.

“It is worse when the tanker is not fully loaded,” the OOIDA Foundation said. “It is like a wave that can knock you over. And that’s essentially what the liquid can do.”

Long said these concerns must be addressed before Congress attempts to move forward with a mandate.

“If we’re going to foist this mandate on the entire industry, we better make sure this technology has been perfected or as close to perfection as technologically possible,” Long said. “And we know from our drivers that it’s not there yet.”

A universal concern among drivers is when the technology causes the truck to brake when it isn’t warranted.

“I think the biggest concern is the false activation of the system and the safety hazards that brings on,” Long said. “We’ve heard that occurs even more frequently during inclement weather. That’s a serious concern. That should be a serious concern even for the people who want this mandate to take place, because if the technology isn’t working effectively those are the things that should be hashed out before a mandate is put in place.”

In 2019, the OOIDA Foundation published an analysis of the effectiveness of AEB technology.

“Most AEB systems are designed to only work at low speeds as sudden braking at higher speeds can startle a driver, leading to erratic driving behavior,” the OOIDA Foundation wrote. “Most AEB systems lack sophisticated situational awareness, meaning they may not be able to recognize if an object ahead is in the current travel lane or the next travel lane over.” The Foundation also said the technology often can’t differentiate whether the object is a temporarily stopped car, a pedestrian, or a bag of garbage.

A 2019 report from AAA on automatic emergency braking with pedestrian detection noted that the technology was less effective at higher speeds and ineffective at night.

While OOIDA remains opposed to any mandates for automatic braking systems, the Association did work with Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., to pass an amendment to the Senate highway bill that would require that the AEB report include feedback from commercial motor vehicle drivers on their experiences with the technology, including any malfunctions or unwarranted activations.

Listening to the men and women who would be forced to use the technology is an absolute must, OOIDA says.

“We’re concerned that Congress is stepping out a little too aggressively to mandate the technology … without understanding some of the hurdles that are still left to be addressed by manufacturers before the technology is something drivers can trust is reliable,” Long said. LL