We just got through Safe Driving Week and now there’s another big safety event on the horizon: the CVSA’s annual Brake Safety Week. Although other enforcement events were paused because of the COVID-19 pandemic, this year’s event will take place from August 23 to 29, 2020 and the focus will be on brake hoses/tubing.
According to FMCSA data, issues with brake hoses or tubing were one of the top violations in 2019, with over 10 percent of vehicles placed out of service for hose and tubing issues.
“We all know how important a properly functioning brake system is to vehicle operation,” said CVSA President Chief Jay Thompson with the Arkansas Highway Police. “All components of the brake system must always be in proper operating condition. Brake systems and their parts and components must be routinely checked and carefully and consistently maintained to ensure the health and safety of the overall vehicle.”
How to Prepare
The best way to prepare for Brake Safety Week is to ensure the brakes on all your commercial motor vehicles are in good working condition. In particular, inspectors will check:
- The mechanical components of your air brakes, as well as your steering axle air brake
- The brake adjustment
- The antilock braking system (if applicable)
- Air loss rate
- The low air pressure warning device
- The tractor protection system
- Whether any of the system components have leaks or cracks
During last year’s Roadcheck event, 45 percent of all out-of-service orders resulted from brake system and brake adjustment violations. To avoid having any of your trucks pulled from the road, it’s important to have your vehicles looked at before this annual event. Those who fail the inspection will be prohibited from operating the vehicle until the deficiencies are corrected.
Vehicles that don’t have any critical violations will receive a CVSA decal indicating that they passed the inspection.
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