Truckers’ speed limiter opposition just a start

Thousands of truck drivers got involved and let the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration know why they believe a speed limiter mandate on commercial motor vehicles would be a mistake.

As of press time, more than 15,000 comments had been submitted to the agency. An overwhelming majority opposed speed limiters and said that a mandate would actually lead to more crashes.

In the nearly seven years I’ve worked at Land Line, it’s the largest response from truck drivers that I can remember. It’s a great start as I believe it’s important for truck drivers to take part in the process and use their voice.

At the same time, though, it’s just a start.

Compared to the abundance of FMCSA notices with only a dozen or so comments, 15,000 seems like a huge number. But it’s a drop in the bucket compared to the number of truck drivers who would be affected by such a mandate. Even more, it’s nothing compared to the overall number of highway users who would be affected by a regulation forcing heavy-duty trucks to travel 20-plus mph below the posted speed limit in some areas.

FMCSA issued an advance notice of supplemental rulemaking in May. The proposal asked for feedback regarding a potential speed limiter mandate on most commercial motor vehicles with a gross vehicle weight of 26,001 or more. Although the notice didn’t set a specific speed, previous proposals have targeted such speeds as 60, 65 or 68 miles per hour.

As of press time, the comment period for the supplemental notice was set to end on July 18.

So, by the time you’re reading this, you may have missed your chance to comment on the agency’s proposal. However, there’s a good chance that the advance notice is only the beginning. If the agency decides to move forward with a notice of proposed rulemaking, that will likely hit the Federal Register sometime next summer.

It is important that truck drivers don’t treat the next year as an out-of-sight, out-of-mind situation.

Plenty of organizations want a speed limiter mandate to become a reality. If you believe that a mandate would hinder your business and increase your crash risk, you need to make sure that is known.

If commercial trucks were limited to 60 mph, for instance, that would create a speed differential of 25 mph in areas with 85 mph zones.

Considering that passenger vehicles often push the posted speed limit by another 5 mph or more, the proposal could create a situation where cars and light-duty trucks are traveling 25-30 mph faster than commercial motor vehicles on the same highway.

It doesn’t require a degree to see the dangers that could result in vehicles driving drastically different speeds on the same road.

The OOIDA Foundation points to research that says the frequency of interactions with other vehicles increases 227% when traveling 10 mph below the speed of traffic.

A study by University of Arkansas researchers in 2006 found that speed limit differentials compromise highway safety.

Thousands of truck drivers helped hammer these points home by commenting on the supplemental notice. If you failed to do so, that’s OK. There’s still time to get involved.

Prepare your arguments for if and when a notice of proposed rulemaking becomes a reality. Send a letter to your lawmakers to let them know why you believe a speed limiter mandate would be a bad idea. Let your friends who aren’t truck drivers know about the proposal and explain to them the severe traffic backups this could cause.

The important thing is to not waste this time or think that it doesn’t matter and that regulators will do whatever they want.

Remember, there’s a reason that this mandate is only for trucks and not cars. It’s because there’s power in numbers. Use those numbers to your advantage by speaking out on this issue and encouraging every highway user to do the same. LL