State Police Participate in North American Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Operation

Contact: Lt. Patrick Morris, Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Division, (989) 758-1909

Agency: State Police

LANSING. Michigan State Police motor carrier officers will join more than 10,000 federal, state and local inspectors from the United States, Canada and Mexico for Roadcheck 2012, an annual international enforcement operation that runs June 5-7.

Officers will focus on promoting safety and security on North American highways through the inspection of commercial vehicles, emphasizing the importance of proper brake system maintenance and driver fatigue. Brake system related violations consistently appear atop the list of more serious vehicle related violations, which result in the vehicle being placed out of service. Driver fatigue is a factor in many commercial truck and bus crashes. For this reason, federal regulations limit the number of hours a commercial driver may operate without an off-duty rest period.

"During this 72-hour period, motor carrier officers will conduct commercial vehicle inspections at sites along major highways throughout the state," Capt. Harold Love, commander of the MSP Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Division. "Motor carrier officers play a critical role in Michigan's public safety by enforcing traffic safety laws on commercial vehicles, protecting the infrastructure through aggressive size and weight enforcement, conducting commercial vehicle and driver inspections, and enforcing hazardous material regulations."

Annual Roadcheck operations are sponsored by the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA), North America's leading commercial vehicle safety advocacy organization. According to CVSA, since its inception in 1988, the roadside inspections conducted during Roadcheck have numbered over one million, resulting in more than 220 lives saved and 4,045 injuries avoided.