Speed Limiter Regulation Officially Iced for Four Years Minimum
The battle of regulations regarding speed regulators is a long-fought war, but those in opposition of it have received some reprieve, as the Department of Transportation (DOT) under the 47th President of the United States Donald Trump has announced that it will not be pursuing speed limiters for the foreseeable future.
Details
While roads have speed limits (and often specific lower speed limits for trucks, depending on the state), there is no physical force that prevents a trucker from going faster. This can be just as important a safety issue as limiting speed depending on circumstances, such as maintaining predictably on a freeway with unpredictable 4-wheel drivers.
In the Federal Register, the DOT announced that it was withdrawing numerous Notices of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), of which were first implemented in the Obama and Biden eras of the presidency. The current administration says their rationale for withdrawing the NPRMs is because their tests did not provide conclusive evidence on the increased safety that speed limiters might bring, saying:
“..the NPRM did not include an estimate of crashes avoided or caused. It remains unclear whether implementing the NPRM would lead to a net increase in crashes, including those involving motorists striking the rear of CMVs at a device-limited speed, which NHTSA and FMCSA have been unable to quantify. Research varies on the topic of speed differentials and their impact on crash rates.”
The current DOT also argued that other technologies such as Automatic Emergency Braking reduce the potential damage of a collision far more than speed limiters ever could.
The move is considered to be a part of the DOT’s pro-trucker package, and has been met with support by various trucking industry organizations such as the American Trucking Associations and the Truckload Carriers Association.
Conclusion
Ultimately, however, this battle will continue until there is conclusive evidence that speed limiters provide enough safety to justify their inclusion on all new trucks. It is unknown when the battle will pick up again, but it is at least until January 20th, 2029, depending on who is next set to lead the executive branch.
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