U14: Field Testing and Analysis of Braking Performance of In-Service Trucks

摘要

The purpose of this project was to collect a high quality data set to provide a snapshot of the braking capability of a representative sampling of in-service commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) on the road today. This data collection effort is important to safety in that no actual stopping performance data has been collected from in-service vehicles since the implementation of the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA) visual inspection in the early 1980's. This assessment utilized improved technology, such as GPS systems and a Performance Based Brake Tester (PBBT), to collect data on CMV braking performance. The data collected in this effort is intended for use in evaluating how current in-service vehicles perform, and how the Level I visual inspection corresponds to braking performance. Since there is no regulation of after-market components, including replacement brake pads, visual inspection may not fully assess the ability of a vehicle to stop safely. Industry and regulators alike could use current vehicle performance data in safety applications as they review present design and maintenance practices and regulations.