Stop Underrides Act

Stop Underrides Act

This bill requires the installation of rear, side, and front underride guards on certain trucks and trailers.

Specifically, the Department of Transportation (DOT) must require the installation of rear, side, and front underride guards on the following

• a trailer or semi-trailer with a gross vehicle weight rating of 10,000 pounds or more, and
• a single unit truck for which the bottom of the carriage is greater than 22 inches above the ground and that is 10,000 pounds or more.

For rear and side underride guards, DOT must require adherence to a performance standard that requires the guards to be able to prevent intrusion from the body or frame of a trailer, semi-trailer, or truck into the passenger compartment of the motor vehicle that contacts the guard while traveling at 35 miles per hour.

In addition, DOT must require drivers to (1) conduct a pre-trip inspection of the underride protection system on their vehicles; (2) identify rusted metal compromising structural integrity, cracked welds, or missing or loose fasteners; and (3) complete any necessary repairs.

DOT must establish a Committee on Underride Protection to oversee the ongoing underride guard rulemaking process.

DOT must publish data on victims of truck underride crashes on a publicly accessible website and update such data quarterly.