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CAPITOL recap
A REVIEW OF IMPORTANT NEWS, LEGISLATION, REGULATIONS,
AND OTHER FACTORS IMPACTING THE TRUCKING INDUSTRY
Stories by John Worthen
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The possibility of a mandate requiring speed limiters on Class 7 and Class 8 trucks remains a hotly debated issue within the trucking industry.
Waiting Game: industry anticipates
FMCSA’s speed limiter ruling
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMC-
SA) proposal to require truck owners and fleets to implement
an engine control unit — also known as a speed limiter
— in all trucks manufactured after 2023 has created somewhat
of a stir in the trucking industry.
As of this writing, the FMCSA was expected to make its final
ruling on the issue by the end of December, according to
Dave Heller, senior vice president of safety and government
affairs for the Truckload Carriers Association (TCA).
“The timeline, of course, is interesting, as it seems as if
the agency always issues its most contentious rulemakings
over the holiday season,” Heller said. “That being said, we
will be on the lookout for it when it hits the Federal Register
so that we can comment appropriately.
“At this point, we expect the agency to announce what
their speed limiter target could be and whether or not they
have allowed for some flexibility in the proposal,” he continued.
“The ‘set it and forget it’ mentality is long gone,
replaced by tech that can be adaptable to drivers and their
safety performance.”
Whatever rule ends is issued, not everyone will be happy
with it, said TCA Chairman Dave Williams.
“At the end of the day, the rule needs to be simple, and it
needs to be soundly based on data and science,” Williams
said. “As an industry, we have done a great job over the
years improving safety. I do believe, as unpopular in some
circles as this may be, that speed limiters will help us get
to the next level of safe operations. Rather than speculating
further, let’s see what comes out and go from there.”
The FMCSA did not say exactly what number it plans to
choose as the governed speed. In September 2023, the agency
published information indicating the chosen speed would
be 68 mph, but that report was quickly removed. As of this
writing, the agency has said nothing else about the matter.
The 2023 proposal is a follow-up to a 2016 joint proposal
between the FMCSA and the National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration for commercial motor vehicle speed limiters.
The 2016 proposal did not gain traction.
During its initial review on the Federal Register as part
of a supplemental notice of proposed rulemaking, the most
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8 Truckload Authority | www.Truckload.org TCA JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2024