US wants to force lower speeds on truck and bus drivers

Foxx has referred to this rulemaking as a top priority for the Department of Transportation, and the proposed rule originally was due to be published in March 2014; the idea behind it dates back almost a decade.

The U.S. Department of Transportation suggests the move could save more than $1 billion in fuel costs every year, on top of the safety benefits to cutting down on the kinetic energy of these road-going goliaths.

“We are pleased NHTSA and FMCSA have, nearly 10 years after we first petitioned them, released this proposal to mandate the electronic limiting of commercial vehicle speeds”, Chris Spear, president of the American Trucking Associations, said Friday in a statement. “Speed limiters are an available solution to large trucks flagrantly exceeding highway speed limits and needlessly putting the public at grave risk”, said Henry Jasny, senior vice president and general counsel for the Advocates For Highway and Auto Safety. The group has endorsed a national speed limit of 65 miles per hour (105 kph) for trucks.

NHTSA Administrator Mark Rosekind calls the proposal “basic physics” in the same release.

The US Department of Transportation and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration released a new proposal Friday to require heavy-duty vehicles like trucks and buses to include speed-limiting devices.

The ATA has urged safety regulators to limit the speed of all vehicles, including passenger cars, to 65 miles per hour. “Even small increases in speed have large effects on the force of impact”.

The regulation has the support of the largest trucking industry trade group and nine of the largest carriers, including Schneider National Inc., C.R. England Inc. and J.B.

Most of the states with speed limits of 80 or above either didn’t know about the truck tire speed ratings or didn’t consider them. And while officials did not cite financial reasons for the change, the speed hike will save the trucking industry a lot of time, which means it will save a lot of money (potentially .7 million).

“Reducing vehicle speeds, as much as any other single thing, can go a long way to reducing the number of fatalities on our highways”, McNally said.

“The government’s proposal to mandate speed limiting devices on large trucks would be risky for all highway users”, OOIDA states.

Spencer said limiting the speeds of trucks electronically would prevent drivers from being able to accelerate to avoid trouble if necessary.