Truck Speed Limiter Notice Draws Massive Response

When the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) in May 2022 asked for comments on the possibility of mandatory speed limiters on trucks, the trucking industry response was immediate and massive. Over 15,650 comments were officially filed, according to the Federal Register count.

Trucking comments were mostly negative but almost always seeking more information from FMCSA on what the agency intended. Some examples:

• Why just trucks? What about four-wheelers?
• Will I be able to increase my speed to avoid accidents or accommodate merging traffic?
• Are you talking about highway speeds only or speed limits everywhere?
• Why don’t you do something about driver detention and truck parking so I don’t lose so much time?
• And always… What maximum speed are you looking at?

Trucking will need to raise those points again. The Advance Notice of Supplemental Proposed Rulemaking that FMCSA published earlier this year mainly concerned itself with the adjustment or reprogramming of the engine control units (ECUs) to allow the setting of a maximum speed. FMCSA did not disclose a prospective speed limit or address the other industry concerns. In 2016, when the agency last considered a mandatory speed limiter rule, it asked about speeds of 60, 65, or 68 mph but did not settle on one figure.

Trucking will see the proposed maximum speed on June 30, 2023, when FMCSA says it will issue its Supplemental Notice of Proposed Rulemaking concerning heavy vehicle speed limiters.

The agency said the proposed rule will affect commercial motor vehicles (trucks and buses) with a gross vehicle weight rating over 26,001 pounds, operated in interstate commerce, when those vehicles are equipped with ECUs capable of governing the maximum speed. Motor carriers would be required by the proposed rule to limit their trucks to the maximum speed to be set by the rulemaking and to maintain that ECU setting for the service life of the vehicle.

Until the proposed rule is released and a final decision made, ICSA’s motor carriers and professional drivers should remember that traffic, weather and road conditions may call for truck speeds slower than the speed limit. The best “speed limiter” made is a safe driver who consistently maintains speeds that are safe for conditions.