Truck Driver Seat Belt Usage Up, FMCSA Says in Pocket Guide Update
Dry and refrigerated van drivers are most likely to use their seat belts, while dump truck drivers are the least likely, but the proportion of commercial drivers using the devices generally is on the rise, according to the latest issue of FMCSA’s Pocket Guide to Large Truck and Bus Statistics.
Belt usage among van drivers rose to 85.7% in 2013 from 80.2% in 2010, FMCSA said, citing its seat belt usage survey of commercial drivers. For dump truck drivers, usage rose to 69.5% from 64.5% over the same time.
The average for all commercial drivers, including bus drivers, rose to 83% from 77.1% over the three-year period.
The survey also looked at rates among four other types of drivers, including flatbed, tank trucks and intermodal.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration published the second issue of the guide in November with about 2,000 paper copies and then posted the 54-page document online. The agency said the guide is intended for researchers, industry, the media and the public.
FMCSA said the document replaces the Commercial Motor Vehicle Facts series that published one-page data summaries over the past 10 years.
Agency spokesman Duane DeBruyne said the guide’s first issue came out in May and the next one will be in the spring.
