Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/710421
For Safety's Sake By Matt Cole 22 // COMPANY DRIVER // AUGUST 2016 FMCSA now requires seat belts for truck passengers T he Federal Motor Carrier Safety Ad- ministration will soon require pas- sengers in property carrying com- mercial vehicles to wear seat belts while in operation on public roads. The agency published a Final Rule in the Federal Register on Tuesday, June 7, which "holds motor carriers and drivers responsi- ble" for making sure passengers in their trucks wear seat belts, the agency says. The rule will take effect Aug. 8. FMCSA said the benefits of the rule are "any fatali- ties or injuries avoided or reduced in severity as a result of seat belt use." The rule doesn't re- quire the use of sleeper berth restraints, however. FMCSA said it "has no information on the ef- fectiveness of current sleeper berth restraints in reconciling crash protection with fatigue prevention," and because stan- dard seat belts aren't used for that purpose, the agency says it will keep the rule as- is. Of the 17 commenters who chimed in on the rule, 12 supported it, accord- ing to FMC- SA's Final R u l e . O f t h o s e who did not support the rule, four didn't believe a rulemaking was neces- sary, or didn't support drivers or carriers being held responsible, FMCSA said. The agency responded saying many states already hold drivers responsible for their passengers, and this rule is an exten- sion of that. The agency added that ensuring passengers are wearing seat belts is a "minor additional requirement" for drivers. According to data from the National High- way Traffic Safety Administration, 37 truck passengers not using seat belts were killed in crashes in 2014, a third of which were ejected from the cab. CD