GREENBELT, MD— The annual 72-hour safety blitz, the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s (CVSA) Roadcheck, will take place from June 3 to 5, the Ontario Trucking Association (OTA) announced.

Truck enforcement agencies from across all North American jurisdictions will participate in this year’s Roadcheck, the largest targeted enforcement program on commercial vehicles.

According to the OTA, about 14 trucks or buses are inspected, on average, every minute from Canada to Mexico during a 72-hour period. Each year, about 10,000 CVSA-certified local, state, provincial and federal inspectors at 1,500 locations across North America perform the truck and bus inspections.

CVSA sponsors Roadcheck with participation by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, Canadian Council of Motor Transport Administrators, Transport Canada, and the Secretariat of Communications and Transportation (Mexico).

Roadcheck is one of a series of activities that occur year round whereby CVSA-certified inspectors conduct compliance, enforcement and educational initiatives targeted at various elements of motor carrier, vehicle, driver and cargo safety and security.

2013 safety ratings recap

Last year, there were a total of 71,630 driver inspections, including those conducted during Level 1 inspections. Out of all inspections, 79.4 percent of vehicles passed, and thus 20.6 percent were placed out of service.

Here’s what caused the failures:

• HOS caused 51.8 percent of failed driver inspections;
• Falsified logs resulted in 13.2 percent of failures;
• Seatbelt violations also caused 899 failures;
• Brake adjustment issues caused 19.5 percent of failed Level 1 inspections;
• Other brake system issues contributed to 30.1 percent of failures;
• Lighting issues represented 12.6 percent of failures;
• Unsafe-loading represented 11.7 percent of failures;
• Tires and wheels represented 10.1 percent of failures.

For more details on the 2013 Roadcheck, read Rolf Lockwood’s story here.