The Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s (CVSA) seven day Brake Safety Week effort is currently taking place throughout North America.

Today is the second day of Brake Safety Week 2022, which runs from August 21 — 27 in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico.

The area of emphasis for Brake Safety Week 2022 is brake hose/tube chafing violations. Brake hose/tube chasing violations data will be collected by inspectors and submitted to the CVSA.

During Brake Safety Week, officers will perform North American Standard Level I and IV Inspections.

While conducting the brake portion of the inspection, officers will be looking for missing, non-functioning, loose, contaminated or cracked parts on the brake system, and non-manufactured holes (such as rust holes and holes created by rubbing or friction) and broken springs in the spring brake housing section of the parking brake. They will listen for audible air leaks around brake components and lines, and ensure the air system maintains air pressure between 90-100 psi (620-690 kPa). Inspectors will also check for S-cam flip-over and measure pushrod travel. They will check that slack adjusters are the same length (from center of S-cam to center of clevis pin) and the air chambers on each axle are the same size. They will also inspect required brake-system warning devices, such as ABS malfunction lamp(s) and low air-pressure warning devices. In addition, inspectors will ensure the breakaway system is operable on the trailer, and inspect the tractor protection system, including the bleed-back system on the trailer.

The CVSA cites the following reasons for a week-long brake enforcement and education campaign:

• Last year’s CVSA International Roadcheck results found that brake systems and brake adjustment violations accounted for 38.9% of all vehicle out-of-service violations, the most of any category of vehicle violations.
• During CVSA’s unannounced one-day brake safety initiative in April, 14.1% of the 9,132 commercial motor vehicles inspected that day were placed out of service for brake-related critical vehicle inspection item violations.
• Brake-related violations accounted for seven out of the top 20 vehicle violations in 2021, according to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA) Motor Carrier Management Information System data snapshot (as of July 29, 2022).
• Brake system was the third most cited vehicle-related factor in large truck fatal crashes, according to FMCSA’s most recent (2019) Large Truck and Bus Crash Facts report.

During Brake Safety Week 2021, 35,764 commercial motor vehicles were inspected throughout North America. Twelve percent of those vehicles were placed out of service for brake violations.

“Poorly maintained brake systems can reduce the braking capacity and stopping distance of large trucks and motorcoaches, which poses a serious risk to driver and public safety,” said CVSA President Capt. John Broers with the South Dakota Highway Patrol. “In those split-second emergency situations, the proper functionality of the brake systems on large commercial motor vehicles is crucial.”