Roadcheck results mixed

The Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA) announced that although the number of commercial trucks, buses and hazmat vehicles placed out of service during its June 6-8 Roadcheck were down from 2005, driver violations were up.

Of the 60,357 vehicles inspected throughout the U.S., Canada and Mexico, 21.7% were placed out of service this year, down slightly from last year's 22.5%.

The number of drivers placed out of service was 5.6%, up from 4.4% in 2005. The most common driver citation was an hours-of-service violation (57.1%), followed by falsified records-of-duty status (12.4%) and licensing-related violations.

Safety belts were a key focus of the campaign, since the usage rate by commercial drivers is estimated to be 54%, compared with 82% for automobile drivers. Only 2% of the drivers in this year's Roadcheck were cited for not wearing safety belts.