America Builds: How Trucking Supports American Communities.
Statement from the Institute for Safer Trucking and Road Safe America
To Subcommittee on Highways and Transit
America Builds: How Trucking Supports American Communities.
The Institute for Safer Trucking and Road Safe America appreciate the opportunity to underscore the importance of safety as part of the House Subcommittee on Highways and Transit’s hearing, America Builds: How Trucking Supports American Communities.
America relies on trucking, but our reliance should not cost thousands of American lives each year. Truck crashes, injuries, and fatalities have surged over the past decade, and urgent action is necessary to change course. Despite voluntary adoption of proven safety technologies by some of the nation’s most profitable trucking companies, bad actors flooding the industry are – simply put – getting worse at a faster rate than safety conscious companies are getting better. This underscores the need for the sensible policies and reasonable reforms we’ve outlined below. Congress has an opportunity to protect families, support responsible trucking companies, and improve safety for everyone on America's roads.
Worsening Truck Safety Trends
Recent years have seen a tragic increase in large truck crashes. Nearly 6,000 people died in large-truck crashes in 2022—a 49% increase from a decade ago, reversing earlier progress and marking the highest death toll in decades. Injuries from truck crashes have more than doubled, rising from 71,476 in 2013 to 160,608 in 2022. Each statistic represents lives forever changed.
Safety Is Good Business
Improving truck safety is not just the right thing to do, it is also good business sense. Crashes involving large trucks are costly. According to FMCSA, the average cost of a fatal crash exceeds $14.5 million, while injury crashes average nearly $400,000. These costs include medical bills, lost cargo, vehicle damage, litigation, and increased insurance premiums.
Forward-thinking trucking companies already use proven safety technologies such as speed limiters, automatic emergency braking (AEB), and dual-facing cameras. These companies have seen fewer crashes, lower operating costs, improved productivity, and reduced downtime. Safety investment is profitable, and these practices should become standard industry-wide.
Require Automatic Emergency Braking (AEB)
The DOT should finalize its proposed rule mandating AEB on new heavy trucks without delay. Studies, including those from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, demonstrate that Class 7 and 8 trucks equipped with AEB have significantly fewer crashes. Leading trucking companies voluntarily usage corroborates these findings. in addition, the European Union has required AEB on trucks since 2013, proving the technology's effectiveness and feasibility. Every day we delay finalizing the AEB rule, which was mandated in the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act leads to more preventable crashes and deaths.
Mandate Heavy Vehicle Speed Limiters
We strongly urge the FMCSA to finalize a rule to require the use electronic speed limiters on large trucks, recommending a maximum speed of 65 mph, or 70 mph with AEB and Adaptive Cruise Control. Excessive speed significantly increases crash severity and reduces drivers’ reaction time, making collisions more devastating. Companies that already set the speed limiters on their trucks understand these facts, but a dangerous contingent of companies choose to ignore them to justify using speed as a competitive advantage.
Critics, like the Owner Operator Independent Drivers Associations, falsely claim that using speed limiters degrades safety. The data and real-world use dispel this disinformation. FMCSA’s own research shows trucks with limiters experience half as many high-speed crashes. Following Ontario, Canada’s implementation of mandatory speed limiters, research showed a dramatic reduction in speed-related truck crashes—73% fewer speed-related, at-fault truck crashes—with no associated increase in crashes caused by speed differentials. Here in the U.S., major trucking fleets using speed limiters consistently report fewer crashes, lower insurance premiums, and better safety records, disproving critics' claims. Many of these companies operate across a range of states with varying speed limits and none of these companies have been sued because of their decisions to set speed limits on their trucks. A uniform federal speed limiter requirement would enhance safety at no capital-cost to the industry and level the playing field among carriers.
Expand Telematics for Safety and Accountability
Congress and FMCSA should promote the widespread adoption of telematics. This technology provides real-time tracking and monitoring of vehicle performance and driver behaviors such as speed, braking, and hours-of-service compliance. Companies using telematics report lower crash rates, fewer violations, improved efficiency, reduced fuel consumption, and returns on investment.
FMCSA should develop standards and incentives to accelerate telematics adoption. Congress could support these efforts through tax incentives or integrating telematics into a “Beyond Compliance” program that recognizes companies proactively improving safety.
Increase Financial Responsibility Minimums
Current federal minimum liability insurance for trucking—set at $750,000 per event in 1980—is severely outdated and inadequate. Adjusted for inflation, that amount equates to approximately $5 million today. Outdated insurance minimums shift costs onto victims, families, and taxpayers, effectively subsidizing unsafe trucking operations.
We strongly advocate raising federal minimum insurance levels to align with modern costs. At minimum, FMCSA should adjust the requirement for inflation to approximately $5 million per event. Such increases will protect victims and hold negligent companies financially accountable.
Close Loopholes and Oppose Immunity for Negligent Brokers
Freight brokers, responsible for arranging an increasing percentage of interstate shipments, must be held accountable for hiring unsafe carriers. Some brokers choose carriers based on price alone, ignoring safety records or past violations. Brokers then seek immunity from liability when those unsafe carriers cause crashes.
Congress must reject any legislative or regulatory efforts granting blanket immunity to brokers. Instead, FMCSA should clarify brokers’ duty of care, reinforcing their responsibility to thoroughly vet carrier safety before hiring.
Strengthen New Entrant Program and Prevent “Chameleon Carriers”
FMCSA’s New Entrant Safety Assurance Program needs reform. Currently, many unsafe or high-risk trucking companies evade oversight by re-registering under new identities ("chameleon carriers"). GAO investigations show these carriers have much higher crash risks yet often go undetected, with suspicious carriers three times more likely to be involved in severe crashes than other new entrants.
FMCSA should expand rigorous vetting to include all new freight carriers and leverage data analytics to flag potential chameleon operators. Audits should occur sooner—ideally within six months, or immediately if safety issues arise. New entrants should also be required to complete safety training before receiving operating authority. Congress should allocate resources for FMCSA to enhance this critical oversight.
Conclusion
America’s communities depend on trucking, but we also deserve safe operations. Proven solutions—mandatory AEB, speed limiters, telematics, increased insurance minimums, accountability for brokers, and strengthened oversight—will significantly reduce truck crashes, injuries, and fatalities. These recommendations are evidence-based and supported by research. Implementing these measures will protect families, promote fairness within the industry, and ensure safer roads for all of us.
