Unveiling the Outcomes of Brake Safety Week 2023
During the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s annual Brake Safety Week inspection blitz focusing on brake systems and components, more than 87% of the commercial vehicles inspected were free of brake-related out-of-service violations.
Law enforcement inspected 18,875 total commercial motor vehicles, 2,375 (12.6%) were removed from the roadways because inspectors discovered brake-related out-of-service violations.
Some examples of brake-related out-of-service violations that automatically placed the vehicles out of service:
- Broken brake drums
- Loose air tanks
- Corroded holes in a spring brake housing
- Inoperative tractor protection valves
Service brake violations, such as cracked linings, brake adjustment or loose chambers, may combine to put the combination of vehicles out of service under the 20% brake criterion, which states that a vehicle is out of service if the number of defective brakes is equal to or greater than 20% of the service brakes on the vehicle or combination. Certain service brake violations are automatically placed out of service when found on the steering axle.
- 295 (12.4%) had steering axle brake violations
- 1,127 (47.5%) had stand-alone brake violations
- 1,394 (58.7%) failed the 20% defective brakes criterion.
The focus area for this year’s Brake Safety Week was lining/pad violations, inspectors checked brake lining/pads for cracks, voids, and contamination. They also looked for loose, missing or worn brake lining/pads. A total of 379 power units and 261 trailers had lining/pad violations.
Although lining/pad violations are not necessarily out-of-service violations, CVSA selected lining/pads as the focus for this year’s Brake Safety Week because brake lining/pad violations still affect a motor carrier’s safety rating. If left unaddressed, brake lining/pad violations may lead to more serious problems and can be out-of-service violations if they are on the steering axle or combined with other brake violations for the 20% brake criterion.
Next year’s Brake Safety Week is scheduled for Aug. 25-31, 2024
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