Skip to content
Rear Impact Guards and Rear Impact Protection Notice of Proposed Rulemaking
The Center for Auto Safety is the nation’s premier independent, member driven, non-profit consumer advocacy organization dedicated to improving vehicle safety, quality, and fuel economy on behalf of all drivers, passengers, and pedestrians.
March 1, 2021
DOT Docket No. FMCSA–2019-0211
Docket Management Facility
U.S. Department of Transportation
West Building, Ground Floor
Room W12-140
1200 New Jersey Avenue, S.E.
Washington, D.C. 20590-0001
Filed via www.regulations.gov.
Parts and Accessories Necessary for Safe Operation;
Rear Impact Guards and Rear Impact Protection
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking
85 Federal Register 85571, December 29, 2020
Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety (Advocates), Center for Auto Safety (CAS), Citizens for Reliable and Safe Highways (CRASH), Parents Against Tired Truckers (P.A.T.T.) and the Truck Safety Coalition (TSC) file these comments in response to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s (FMCSA, Agency) Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to include rear impact guards (also known as underride guards) on the list of items that must be examined as part of the annual inspection of a commercial motor vehicle (CMV).1 While the undersigned groups support this NPRM, the Agency’s delay in taking such an elementary action is deeply concerning as CMVs have been subject to an annual inspection for over three decades. Further, more actions must be undertaken by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) to prevent and mitigate underride crashes that needlessly kill and horrifically injure too many individuals each year.