As officials look for ways to keep terrorists from using trucks as weapons of mass destruction, the California Highway Patrol is looking at a device that would allow pursuing police to stop a fleeing truck in its tracks.

According to The New York Times, the system is being tested for the CHP by scientists at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. The gadget activates the truck’s air brakes when a horizontal metal bar running across the rear of the truck is nudged by a pursuing vehicle. Developers say the device also could be triggered remotely with a radio or telephone signal.
The bumper device has been demonstrated to law enforcement officials and trucking industry representatives in California. One of the big issues, however, is how to make sure it’s on the trucks you want it on.
David Longo, a spokesman for the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, told the paper that he had not heard of the device being considered in California. And even if it were required to be installed on trucks licensed in the state, to be adopted at the federal level would be a time-consuming regulatory process.
Other problems with the system exist, as well. For one thing, it could only be used if you knew a truck was in the hands of terrorists – and what would stop a terrorist from detonating a bomb as soon as a patrol car made its move?
Inventors estimated the device would cost no more than $200 installed.