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Table 5-6: Roadside Safety Inspection Activity Summary by Inspection Type

Almost a quarter of roadside inspections of commercial vehicles result in the vehicle being taken out-of-service (OOS) for a serious violation. A much lower percentage of driver and hazardous materials inspections result in OOS orders. In 2002, only 7 percent of driver inspections and 6 percent of hazardous materials inspections resulted in an OOS order.

Table in Excel format

empty Cell 2000 Number 2000 Percent 2001 Number 2001 Percent 2002 Number 2002 Percent
All inspections empty Cell empty Cell empty Cell empty Cell empty Cell empty Cell
Number of inspections 2,453,776 100.0 2,747,829 100.0 3,017,080 100.0
With no violations 639,593 26.1 743,577 27.1 831,974 27.6
With violations 1,814,183 73.9 2,004,252 72.9 2,185,106 72.4
empty Cell
Driver inspections empty Cell empty Cell empty Cell empty Cell empty Cell empty Cell
Number of inspections 2,396,688 100.0 2,685,568 100.0 2,959,934 100.0
With no violations 1,459,538 60.9 1,657,098 61.7 1,871,238 63.2
With violations 937,150 39.1 1,028,470 38.3 1,088,696 36.8
With OOS violations 191,031 8.0 204,120 7.6 212,942 7.2
empty Cell
Vehicle inspections empty Cell empty Cell empty Cell empty Cell empty Cell empty Cell
Number of inspections 1,908,300 100.0 2,073,386 100.0 2,175,558 100.0
With no violations 584,389 30.6 604,303 29.1 664,938 30.6
With violations 1,323,911 69.4 1,469,083 70.9 1,510,620 69.4
With OOS violations 452,850 23.7 484,546 23.4 498,251 22.9
empty Cell
Hazardous materials inspections empty Cell empty Cell empty Cell empty Cell empty Cell empty Cell
Number of inspections 133,486 100.0 186,024 100.0 173,905 100.0
With no violations 101,098 75.7 148,955 80.1 139,643 80.3
With violations 32,388 24.3 37,069 19.9 34,262 19.7
With OOS violations 9,964 7.5 10,280 5.5 9,986 5.7

Key: OOS = out of service.

Note: A roadside inspection is an examination of individual commercial motor vehicles and drivers to determine if they are in compliance with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations and/or Hazardous Materials Regulations. Serious violations result in the issuance of driver or vehicle out of service (OOS) orders. These violations must be corrected before the driver or vehicle can return to service. Moving violations also may be recorded in conjunction with a roadside inspection.

Source: U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Motor Carrier Administration, Motor Carrier Management Information System (MCMIS) September 19, 2003 data snapshot. Available at www.fmcsa.dot.gov as of October 2004.

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