ATA to Seek Federal Requirement for Speed Limiters

merican Trucking Associations will ask federal officials to require all new heavy-duty trucks to be built with speed limiters that allow the vehicles to travel no faster than 68 miles-per-hour, the Associated Press reported Tuesday.

Many of the nation’s larger trucking companies, whom ATA represents in its lobbying efforts, already equip their rigs with speed limiters, prompting arguments from critics that the association’s move is an attempt to reduce competition from independent drivers who are not yet required to use the devices, AP said.

Todd Spencer, executive vice president of the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association, told the Associated Press that the introduction of mandatory speed limiters might be aimed at reducing driver churn at large trucking firms.

Leigh Strope, a spokeswoman for the Teamsters union, told AP that the 12,000 drivers the group represents would be largely unaffected by a speed limiter requirement as many of the labor contracts under which Teamsters members operate include speed limit provisions.