Nearly 9% of the commercial vehicles inspected during an unannounced Brake Safety Day were put out of service for brake-related safety violations.

Inspectors in 45 jurisdictions throughout Canada, Mexico, and the U.S. conducted 4,569 commercial motor vehicle inspections and placed 398 (8.7%) of those vehicles out of service due to brake-related violations as part of the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s Brake Safety Day. (Read about last year's Brake Safety Day results.)

On Brake Safety Day, an unannounced one-day brake-safety inspection and enforcement event, certified commercial motor vehicle inspectors conduct their routine roadside inspections focusing on brake systems and components. They then provide that brake-related inspection and violation data to CVSA. This year’s event was on April 22.

Inspectors this year put special emphasis on brake drums and rotors. 

Out of Service Brake Violations

Of those 398 vehicles placed out of service, nearly 60% failed the 20% defective brakes criterion — when 20% or more of the vehicle’s (or combination of vehicles’) brakes have an out-of-service condition.

In addition, inspectors found:

• 77 out-of-service violations related to brake hoses and/or tubing

• 48 steering axle out-of-service violations

• 38 vehicles failed an air loss rate test.

There were 112 other out-of-service brake violations, such as worn brake lines/hoses, inoperative tractor protection system, inoperative low-air warning device, air leaks, hydraulic fluid leaks, etc.

Performance Based Brake Testers

Nine U.S. jurisdictions used a performance-based brake tester (PBBT) on Brake Safety Day and conducted 100 PBBT Inspections. 

A PBBT is a machine that assesses the braking performance of a vehicle. U.S. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations and CVSA’s North American Standard Out-of-Service Criteria require a minimum braking efficiency of 43.5%. 

Eight (8%) vehicles failed to meet the required 43.5% minimum braking efficiency rate and were placed out of service.

Up Next: Brake Safety Week

CVSA’s unannounced Brake Safety Day is part of Operation Airbrake, a CVSA program dedicated to improving commercial motor vehicle brake safety throughout North America. CVSA’s seven-day Brake Safety Week, another Operation Airbrake campaign, is scheduled for Aug. 24-30. It also will focus on brake drums and rotors.