Commercial motor vehicle enforcement personnel in Canada, Mexico and the U.S. conducted 48,761 inspections during this year’s International Roadcheck, which took place May 14-16. Seventy-seven percent of commercial motor vehicles and 95.2% of commercial motor vehicle drivers did not have any out-of-service (OOS) violations.Iowa State Patrol Commercial Motor Vehicle Unit
The overall vehicle OOS rate was 23%, and the driver OOS rate was 4.8%.The 2023 OOS rate for vehicles was 19% and 5.5% for drivers. As of August 30, the national average for vehicle OOS violations was 22.26% and 6.67% for driver OOS violations.
In the U.S., CVSA-certified inspectors performed 42,332 inspections during the three day enforcement blitz this year: 24,232 Level I Inspections, 9,955 Level II Inspections and 8,145 Level III Inspections. Inspectors identified 11,675 vehicle, 2,619 driver and 140 hazmat violations and placed 7,930 vehicle combinations and 2,151 drivers out of service. The vehicle OOS rate was 23.2% and the driver OOS rate was 5.1%. The top vehicle violation was for defective brakes (3,093). The top driver violation was hours of service (845). Loading was the top hazmat violation (60).
The focus of this year's campaign was tractor protection systems (TPS), including the tractor protection valve, trailer supply valve and anti-bleed-back valve. Inspectors identified 564 TPS-related violations on commercial motor vehicle combinations.
Vehicle violations
Of the 40,458 Level I, II and V Inspections conducted across North America, 9,299 vehicles combinations were placed out of service, which means those vehicle combinations were restricted from further travel until all OOS vehicle violations were resolved. A vehicle is placed out of service when an inspector identifies critical vehicle inspection item violations, as detailed in the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s (CVSA) North American Standard Out-of-Service Criteria. The top vehicle OOS violation in North America this year was, again, defective service brakes.
Driver Violations
Of the 47,743 Level I, II and III Inspections, inspectors restricted 2,290 commercial motor vehicle drivers from further travel due to driver OOS violations. Hours-of-service violations were the top reason drivers were placed out of service. Inspectors restricted 870 drivers from further travel due to hours-of-service violations.
The driver emphasis area for this year's blitz was alcohol and controlled-substance possession. Inspectors issued 78 drug and 26 alcohol possession/use OOS violations throughout North America during International Roadcheck. In the U.S., inspectors identified 63 drivers who were parked for operating vehicles even though they were listed in the FMCSA’s Drug and Alcohol Clearinghouse.
Another driver violation that was captured during International Roadcheck was safety belt usage. A total of 535 safety belt violations were issued during this year’s International Roadcheck. According to FMCSA, 14% of commercial motor vehicle drivers do not wear their safety belt. The agency intends to conduct an online survey of commercial motor vehicle drivers to understand their perceptions and behaviors regarding safety belt usage and road safety.
