Nearly 87% of commercial motor vehicles inspected during Brake Safety Week in August had no brake-related critical violations, the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance announced this week.

Of the 38,117 commercial vehicles inspected across the U.S., Canada and Mexico during the week, only 5,059 (13.3%) were placed out of service, a slightly higher OOS rate than the 12% posted last year among 35,764 inspections. 

Fifty-three Canadian and U.S. jurisdictions, and Mexico’s Ministry of Communications and Transportation, participated in this year’s Brake Safety Week, which is a voluntary brake-safety inspection and enforcement initiative.

Broken out by country, in the U.S., of the 34,402 commercial motor vehicles inspected, 4,664 (13.6%) were placed out of service, a figure mostly flat with the 2021 OOS rate of 13.5% out of the 28,694 commercial motor vehicles inspected last year. 

Canada saw a significant jump in OOS violations year-over-year despite a similar number of vehicle inspections. Inspectors in Canada this year saw 1,975 commercial motor vehicles and placed 351 (17.8%) OOS for brake-related violations. Last year, Canada conducted 1,903 inspections, placing 15.4% OOS. 

In Mexico, 1,740 commercial motor vehicles were inspected – far fewer than the 5,167 inspected in 2021 – and 44 (2.5%) were placed out of service, an OOS rate comparable with the year before. 

Additionally, inspectors identified and documented 6,305 brake hose/tube chafing violations, which are a common brake-related violation and was the focus area for this year’s Brake Safety Week. Inspectors reported brake hose chafing violations in four different categories, with varying levels of chafing severity, including two which were out-of-service violations.

In addition, 11 jurisdictions with performance-based brake testers assessed the braking performance of 392 commercial motor vehicles during Brake Safety Week. Twenty-nine trucks failed their PBBT test – a 7% out-of-service rate. PBBTs, based on mechanical or electronic decelerometers, assess the overall vehicle braking capability through a stopping performance test in which deceleration and/or stopping distance is obtained, independent of brake type or application method.

Next year’s Brake Safety Week is scheduled for Aug. 20-26, 2023. There will also be an unannounced one-day brake safety enforcement initiative, which may be held at any time. It took place this year in late April.