Sen. Chuck Schumer Presses DOT on Speed Limiters
The U.S. Department of Transportation should quickly finalize a proposed federal speed-limiter rule for new heavy trucks, New York Sen. Chuck Schumer (D) said Oct. 6.
“Trucks, and large buses that barrel down our roads unsafely put everyone in danger, but now that we have a sensible technology that can make extreme truck and bus speeds a thing of the past, we must push the feds to accelerate its swift adoption,” Schumer said. He issued his statement while standing near the Long Island Expressway, according to his website.
In September, federal regulators proposed that heavy-duty vehicles be equipped with devices that limit their speeds on roadways, adding that such limiters will not be required to be tamperproof.
The proposal outlined by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration and the National Highway Traffic Administration is not specific on a speed that will be adopted when a final rule is announced. It did suggest setting the limiters to 60, 65 or 68 mph.
American Trucking Associations President Chris Spear this week criticized the proposal, calling it “flawed” because it would create differential speeds along highways.
“Proposing a rule that does not take into account the various differentials in speed between what this rule proposes and what state speed limits are is dangerous,” Spear said Oct. 4 at ATA’s Management Conference & Exhibition in Las Vegas.
