Certified commercial motor vehicle inspectors throughout North America conducted 4,021 inspections of commercial motor vehicles during a recent surprise one day enforcement blitz, and placed 574 of those vehicles out of service due to brake-related violations.

Brake Safety Day is the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s (CVSA) annual brake-safety inspection, regulatory compliance and data-collection initiative. Forty-seven jurisdictions throughout Canada, Mexico and the U.S. participated in this year’s Brake Safety Day, which was April 14.

This year, emphasis was placed on drums and rotors. Inspectors identified 43 drum and rotor violations, of which 21 were out-of-service violations, according to the CVSA.

Inspectors identified 313 commercial motor vehicles that met the 20% defective brakes out of-service criterion, which is when 20% or more of the vehicle’s (or combination of vehicles’) brakes have a condition that impairs braking ability to a degree that the brake is considered defective.

In addition, inspectors identified 121 out-of-service violations related to brake hoses and/or tubing, 47 vehicles had steering axle out-of-service violations, 40 vehicles failed an air loss rate test, and there were 193 other out-of-service brake violations, such as inoperative tractor protection system, hydraulic or electric brake violations, inoperative parking/emergency brake, inoperative low-air warning device, etc. 

Ten U.S. jurisdictions conducted 349 inspections utilizing a performance-based brake tester (PBBT), which is a machine that assesses the braking performance of a vehicle. U.S. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations and CVSA’s North American Standard Out-of-Service Criteria require a minimum braking efficiency of 43.5%. Twenty-six vehicles failed to meet the required 43.5% minimum braking efficiency rate and were placed out of service.

Most of the inspections completed (3,643 or 90.6%) on Brake Safety Day were North American Standard Level I Inspections. A Level I Inspection is a thorough 37-step procedure that examines the driver’s operating requirements and assesses the vehicle’s mechanical fitness. The Level I Inspection is the most-commonly conducted inspection type overall.

CVSA’s Brake Safety Day is part of Operation Airbrake, a CVSA program dedicated to improving commercial motor vehicle brake safety throughout North America. CVSA’s seven-day brake safety campaign is scheduled for Aug. 23-29.