Big rig safety improvement in Missouri attributed to the Internet

While the number of trucks inspected in Missouri last year increased 34%, the number of violations increased only 3% and the number of violations serious enough to place trucks out of service only increased 1.5%, according to Capt. Tim Hull, of the Missouri Highway Patrol.

Hull told KMOX News that one reason the number of violations failed to keep pace with the number of inspections is that companies are concerned about what shippers can find out about them on the Internet.

“Other companies and people who use those companies to transport their products can get on there (online) and look and see what their safety record is. (They can) see how many inspections their company’s had and how their vehicles have done,” Hull said

State troopers inspected 84,497 trucks in 2011 and issued 41,490 citations for 186,806 violations including 34,458 violations that required the trucks to be taken out of service. In 2010, troopers inspected 63,190 trucks. They found 181,623 violations including 33,982 that required trucks to be taken out of service.

Many trucks cited had multiple violations, most involving problems found with brakes, tires, lighting or driver log violations. The patrol doesn’t have numbers on how many trucks were taken off the road for serious violations, just how many violations were found, Hull said.