Trucking industry seeks to limit speeds of new vehicles
By The Associated Press and JEFF WILFORD, Assistant City Editor

WASHINGTON --- A lobbying group for the largest U.S. trucking companies wants to force big-rig manufacturers to install devices that limit the speed of new vehicles to 68 miles per hour in a bid to reduce crashes and save lives.

Critics of the proposal put forth by American Trucking Association see a veiled attempt to gain a competitive edge over independent drivers, and a public relations effort to curry favor with safety regulators.

At least two Waterloo trucking companies --- Warren Transport Inc. and Gray Transportation --- also criticized the proposal.

"The problem with the 68 mph speed limit is, it may fit certain operations, but it won't fit every operation," said Bob Molinaro, president of Warren Transport Inc.

The Alexandria, Va.-based American Trucking Association formally petitioned the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Friday "to limit the maximum speed of large trucks at the time of manufacture" and ask the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to "prohibit the tampering or adjustment of speed limiting devices to greater than 68 miles per hour."

There are 24 states where the speed limit for trucks on interstate highways is 70 miles per hour and higher.

Molinaro and LeRoy Gray, CEO of Gray Transportation in Waterloo, said limiting the top speed to 68 mph would actually create a traffic hazard rather than improve safety.

It would make it more difficult for other drivers to pass the slower trucks, causing traffic to stack up behind the trucks, Molinaro said.

"I don't think it's a good idea to limit the speed slower than what the national speed limit is on the freeways, because that's where most of them travel anyway," Gray said.

Gray Transportation has electronic limiters installed in its trucks by the manufacturers, limiting their top speed to 72 mph, Gray said. That was the speed the manufacturers recommended to allow the trucks to flow better with traffic, he said.

Warren Transport does not have devices installed in its trucks to limit speed.

Industry officials not affiliated with the American Trucking Association said the group's proposal appears to be motivated by economics as much as by safety.

Because many of the country's largest trucking companies already have devices installed in their vehicles to limit drivers' speeds below 68 miles per hour, the trade group may be seeking the new rules as a way to remove an advantage among rivals who are free to drive faster, these officials said.

"Certain trucking companies would like to limit the productivity of their competitors," said Todd Spencer, executive vice president for the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association.

Spencer said leveling the playing field on truck speeds may also be an issue in an industry that "doesn't pay very well" and is facing a driver shortage. "Many drivers will leave a company that has speed-reduced trucks for a company without them," he said.

And with some trucking companies interested in putting longer and heavier double- and triple-trailers on the road, "they may feel it would be easier to slide that by the public if they were to package it by saying that all these trucks are going to be driving slower now," Spencer said.

Federal statistics released in August showed the number of fatalities from truck-involved crashes declined to 5,212 in 2005, down from 5,235 in 2004. The number of people injured in large truck crashes fell to 114,000, a decrease of 2,000 from the year before.

Some analysts said trucking companies might also be trying to improve the fuel efficiency of their fleets.

Molinaro also objected to the proposal because he said it was based on input from five major carriers.

"What I think is wrong with this announcement is, it's premature. They had no discussion on this. It came out of the blue," Molinaro said.


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