What’s going on with the speed limiter proposal?
Truck drivers’ concerns over a proposal to require speed limiters on most commercial motor vehicles are evident.
According to the Regulations.gov website, about 15,600 comments were submitted to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration regarding its notice about a potential speed limiter mandate. The turnout was dramatically larger than most FMCSA notices, and an overwhelming majority of the comments came from individual truck drivers opposed to the requirement.
Although the comment period ended in July and no new notices have been released, the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association continues to field phone calls every week from truck drivers who want to know what’s happening with the speed limiter proposal.
As 2022 nears an end, it’s a good time to catch everyone up on what we know and what we don’t know regarding a possible speed limiter mandate.
What’s happened so far?
Attempts to mandate speed-limiting devices on heavy-duty trucks are not new. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration published a report on the topic all the way back in 1991, and the American Trucking Associations petitioned NHTSA to limit trucks to 68 mph in 2006.
The effort resurfaced in 2016 when FMCSA and NHTSA issued a joint notice of proposed rulemaking, but the proposal was shelved after a new administration took office in 2017.
This past May, new life was breathed back into the old idea when FMCSA issued a supplemental advance notice of proposed rulemaking.
Under the initial proposal, commercial motor vehicles with a gross vehicle weight of 26,001 pounds or more and that are equipped with an electronic engine control unit capable of being governed would be subject to the mandate.
What do we know?
According to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s latest report on significant rulemakings, FMCSA targeted June 30 for the release of a notice of proposed rulemaking on speed limiters. However, don’t be surprised if it’s much later in the summer before the agency unveils a formal proposal.
FMCSA Administrator Robin Hutcheson told Land Line that June 30 is just an estimate, and that the agency is tasked with reading thousands of comments and evaluating costs, safety benefits and regulatory options before it can move forward.
What do we not know?
Quite a bit.
The advance notice lets the public know that FMCSA is taking a strong look at a speed limiter mandate, but it does not include a formal proposal. Only when that happens will we know what speed the agency plans to limit trucks to and exactly which vehicles would be subject to the mandate.
FMCSA is using the comments from the advance notice to determine the speed – 60, 65 and 68 have been considered – as well as to decide if it should exempt older trucks. According to the advance notice, the agency is considering making the rule apply only to commercial motor vehicles manufactured after 2003.
Who wants a speed limiter mandate?
Safety groups and large carriers who already require their trucks to be speed limited are the main proponents.
In addition, the U.S. Department of Transportation has made speed reduction as one of the top goals for its National Roadway Safety Strategy.
“The department believes it is important to prioritize safety and moving individuals at safe speeds over focusing exclusively on the throughput of motor vehicles,” the U.S. DOT wrote in the National Roadway Safety Strategy. “Both exceeding the posted speed limit and driving too fast for conditions are speeding-related crash factors. By this definition, speeding has played a role in more than a quarter of traffic deaths – killing nearly 100,000 people – over the past decade.”
Who is opposed?
Based on the comments, it appears that the majority of truck drivers are opposed at any attempt to require all trucks to use the devices.
Truck drivers say it would be another example of overregulation and point to problems with speed differentials and road rage incidents that would result from drivers of passenger vehicles being stuck behind slow-moving tractor-trailers.
The Association used its comments to echo many of the concerns truck drivers have over a mandate, including the dangers of speed differentials, inability to accelerate to avoid crashes and being the victim of road rage incidents.
“DOT has spoken about the need to make trucking a more viable and sustainable career for those entering the industry and the millions of Americans already making their living behind the wheel,” OOIDA wrote. “These goals must be accomplished through a more practical, less burdensome regulatory approach rather than a heavy-handed speed limiter mandate that would limit the profitability of small-business truckers.”
What can you do?
First, realize that the fight is far from over.
The efforts toward a speed limiter mandate are still extremely early in the process. Even after the FMCSA issues a notice of proposed rulemaking, there will need to be another comment period before it can attempt to issue a final rule.
Until then, OOIDA recommends reaching out to your lawmakers to explain why you believe a speed limiter mandate would be a bad idea. Additionally, encourage other truck drivers to do the same and to be ready to submit comments on the next notice. LL
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