Related: IIHS Tests Show Clear Safety Benefit of Side Underride Guards
Proposed Bill Would Require Front and Side Impact Guards
A have proposed a bill to require impact guards on the sides and front of a truck in order to product passenger vehicles from being crushed underneath a vehicle in a collision.

Photo: IIHS

Photo: IIHS
Several Members of Congress have proposed a bill to require impact guards on the sides and front of trucks to product passenger vehicles from being crushed underneath a a in a collision, according to an NBC News report.
The Stop Underrides Act of 2017 has been introduced by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and is co-sponsored by Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) and Rep. Steve Cohen (D-TN), with Sen. Rubio saying that the bipartisan legislation would save lives.
In addition to requiring side and front guards, the Stop Underrides Act would also update and improve rear-guard requirements.
Testing earlier this year by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety showed that side impact guards on truck trailers demonstrated potentially lifesaving benefits in side impact collisions. The tests were accompanied by video showing the roof of a car being sheared off in a collision at 35 miles per hour, decapitating the test dummy.
Another car at the same speed is shown hitting a trailer with the underride guard and it bounces off of it with only damage to the front of the vehicle.
The Natonal Transportation Safety Board recommended underride guard for trailer protection in 2014.
More Fleet Management

Kodiak Lines Up Fleets for Driverless Trucking
An agreement for 75 trucks, a new Texas freight lane, and progress on safety validation move Kodiak closer to its planned driverless highway launch.
Read More →
ITS Logistics Settles Religious Harassment Case
The Nevada-based logistics firm agreed to pay more than $396,000 to settle a religious harassment charge involving an employee's Jewish identity.
Read More →
Your Trucks Are Busy. That Doesn’t Mean They’re Winning.
High utilization doesn’t always mean strong margins. Looking beyond the current load can help fleets make better dispatch decisions and get more value from each truck’s time.
Read More →
Why This Trucking Recovery Is Different
Freight demand remains sluggish, but rising costs and tougher enforcement have taken enough capacity out of the market to change the outlook for motor carriers.
Read More →
Platform Science Adds Dispatch and Safety Tools
Four additions to PS Fleet help fleets monitor loads, manage driver coaching, share truck locations and adjust video system settings.
Read More →
PrePass Intelligence Mines Fleet Bypass, Toll and Safety Data
PrePass Intelligence helps fleets measure bypass savings, flag potential toll overcharges, and spot suspicious transactions by combining data from separate systems.
Read More →
Motive Adds AI Agents for Fleet Operations
New tools automate follow-up on fleet data, from maintenance work orders to driver alerts, with two-way voice conversations planned for later this year.
Read More →Can You Beat Our Trucking Trivia Challenge?
Test your truck knowledge with 19 trivia questions from Heavy Duty Trucking Exchange. Can you keep up with the fleet pros?
Read More →
BeyondTrucks Adds Rules Checks to Dispatch
New Compatibility Engine checks driver qualifications, equipment requirements and fleet policies before loads are dispatched.
Read More →
Diesel Prices Hijack Trucking’s Worry List
ATRI’s annual survey finds cautious optimism about freight, but diesel costs, litigation, and insurance continue to squeeze fleets. Drivers have different priorities on several issues.
Read More →
