Are Speed Limiters on Trucks Necessary?

A study was recently released by the FMCSA confirming that electronically governing and limiting the top speed of commercial trucks has clear safety benefits.

The report’s research was done by the American Transportation Research Institute and Virginia Tech Institute, concluded that complaints from critics were not substantiated by the data.

The report stated that the “potential downside of speed deviations among vehicles that could occur due to the interaction of [speed limiter]-equipped vehicles and those without [speed limiters] seems to be far outweighed by the significant safety benefits associated with a reduction in absolute speed afforded by [speed limiters].”

While I agree that we must find ways to continually increase the safety on our roads, I personally am still concerned about situations where momentarily increasing a vehicle’s speed is necessary to avoid a collision or maneuver around a situation on the road ahead.

With the increased use of telematics systems, which monitor driver speed and can provide instant feedback to fleet managers, and use of driver training and behavior modification programs, is limiting a trucks top-end speed necessary?  

Do you agree with this analysis? Do you currently limit the top-end speed of your trucks for safety reasons? What are your thoughts and concerns?

By Lauren Fletcher

Lauren.Fletcher@bobit.com