September 6-12 was Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance Brake Safety Week. According to Matt Cole of the Commercial Carrier Journal, 18,817 trucks were inspected that week. 2,321 were placed out of service for brakes violations. The math works out to 12.3%. To put that in easier to understand numbers: based on those results, roughly 1 out of every 8 trucks on the road has faulty brakes.
Our industry is oft-criticized and rarely do we get the respect and gratitude of the nation we serve. However, if we cannot safely and responsibly haul our loads then we deserve the nation’s criticism and mistrust. The good news is, this brake-failure rate is down from 16.2 percent in 2014. But let us be honest: a 1-in-8 failure rate is not good enough. We need to do better and we can do better.
Carriers, drivers, let’s get on the ball and make sure our trucks are safe out there.