Roadcheck 2020 will focus on driver requirements

Driver requirements will be the focus of inspectors during the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s Roadcheck 2020 enforcement campaign.

CVSA’s annual campaign will begin May 5-7, a month earlier than usual. In a news release announcing the campaign, CVSA officials said moving the date up may allow for more favorable weather in many jursidictions.

Over that 72-hour period, commercial motor vehicle inspectors in jurisdictions throughout North America will conduct inspections on commercial motor vehicles and drivers.

Each year, Roadcheck places special emphasis on a category of violations. This year’s focus is on the driver requirements category of a roadside inspection.

Inspectors will be checking licenses and endorsements as well as medical examiner certificates, record of duty status, seat belt usage, and for the illegal presence of alcohol, drugs, weapons or other contraband, according to a flyer CVSA has produced for the event.

“With last year’s federal electronic logging device full-compliance mandate in the U.S., the Alliance decided that this year’s International Roadcheck would be the perfect opportunity to revisit all aspects of roadside inspection driver requirements,” CVSA president and Delaware State Police Sgt. John Samis said in a news release.

During International Roadcheck, CVSA-certified inspectors primarily conduct the North American Standard Level I Inspection, a 37-step procedure examining both driver operating requirements and vehicle mechanical fitness.

The vehicle inspection includes checking critical vehicle inspection items such as: brake systems, cargo securement, coupling devices, driveline/driveshaft components, driver’s seat (missing), exhaust systems, frames, fuel systems, lighting devices, steering mechanisms, suspensions, tires, van and open-top trailer bodies, wheels, rims and hubs, and windshield wipers. Additional items for buses, motorcoaches, passenger vans or other passenger-carrying vehicles include emergency exits, electrical cables and systems in engine and battery compartments, and temporary and aisle seating.

Last year’s Roadcheck, which focused on steering and suspension, resulted in over 67,000 inspections.

If no critical vehicle inspection item violations are found during a Level I or Level V Inspection, a CVSA decal will be applied to the vehicle, indicating that the vehicle successfully passed a decal-eligible inspection conducted by a CVSA-certified inspector. However, if a required rear impact guard is inspected during a Level I or Level V Inspection and violations are present, a CVSA decal will not be issued.

If an inspector does identify critical vehicle inspection item violations, the vehicle may be rendered out of service if the condition meets the North American Standard Out-of-Service Criteria. This means the vehicle cannot be operated until the vehicle violation(s) are corrected. A driver can also be placed out of service for driver credential-related issues or driver conditions, such as fatigue or impairment.

International Roadcheck is the largest targeted enforcement program on commercial motor vehicles in the world, with approximately 17 trucks and buses inspected, on average, every minute in Canada, Mexico and the U.S. during a 72-hour period. Since its inception in 1988, more than 1.6 million roadside inspections have been conducted during International Roadcheck campaigns.