Moving Words – Inspection

Timothy Brady

“A failure will not appear until a unit has passed final inspection.”  – Arthur Bloch

Here are the results from the 2022 Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance International Roadcheck Inspection Blitz. You should find some interesting take-aways to consider from this information. For instance, how do your van operators and vehicles compare to these result percentages? Are there areas which need improvements in training or techniques that would improve the over-all safety preparedness of your van operators and equipment?

Back on May 17 through 19, 2022, the CVSA did their three-day International Roadcheck Blitz. CVSA inspectors completed safety inspections consisting of both commercial vehicles and drivers in the US and Canada. They conducted 48,966 Level I and Level II inspections and placed 11,181 vehicles out-of-service (a 22.8% out-of-service rate). 3,118 drivers were placed out-of-service (a 6.4% driver out-of-service rate). This equates to 77.2% of vehicles and 93.65 of drivers inspected were found to be violation free.

Here are the top five vehicle Out-Of-Service violations during this Roadcheck Blitz:

1. Brake systems                         4,592 violations (25.2%)
2. Tires                                        3,374 (18.5%)
3. Defective service brakes 2,309 (12.7%)
4. Lights                                       2,219 (12.2%)
5. Cargo securement                    1,934 (10.6%)  

In the top ten vehicle out-of-service violations, tires ranked second and wheels came in seventh. From the over 18,000 vehicle out-of-service violations: 3,374 tire out-of-service violations accounted for 18.5% vehicle OOS violations and 784 wheel out-of-service violations, which is 4.3% vehicle OOS violations. Combined, wheel end (tire and wheel) violations accounted for 22.8% of all out-of-service vehicle violations throughout the US and Canadian inspections. Note: some vehicles had multiple out-of-service violations.

The top five violations for drivers from the Roadcheck Blitz:

1. Log Falsification 1,921 violations (42.6%)
2. Wrong Class License 1,066 (23.6%)
3. Hours of Service 367 (8.1%)
4. Suspended License 260 (5.8%)
5. No Medical Card 222 (4.9%)

 Inspectors principally conducted the Level I inspections, which is a comprehensive 37-step inspection process that involves thorough inspection of the vehicle (including underneath the vehicle) and the driver’s operating credentials.

During the Blitz, of the 33,196 Level I inspections that were conducted in the US, 7,912 commercial motor vehicles (23.8%) and 2,051 drivers (6.2%) were placed out-of-service. In Canada, of the 3,359 Level I inspections conducted, 760 commercial motor vehicles (22.6%) and 191 (5.7%) drivers were placed out-of-service.

This data from the 2022 Roadcheck Blitz will give you a means to determine your fleet’s weaknesses and strengths when compared to the trucking industry as a whole. It outlines the areas in which you, your van operators, and service personnel should focus your efforts.

“You cannot inspect quality into a product, the quality is there or isn’t by the time it’s inspected.” –  Harold S. Dodge