Inspectors placed 12.6% of inspected commercial motor vehicles out of service (OOS) in Canada during Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s (CVSA) North American Brake Safety Week, held Aug. 25-31.

Officials conducted 1,926 inspections and discovered 243 brake-related out-of-service violations. Forty-four power units and 49 towed units had lining/pad violations.

Overall, certified inspectors across Canada, Mexico, and the U.S. conducted 16,725 inspections. Approximately 87% of the vehicles inspected did not have out-of-service violations and were deemed safe and permitted to proceed on roadways.

Out of the 16,725 inspections conducted, 2,149 of those vehicles had brake-related out-of-service violations, which is a 12.8% out-of-service rate.

Of the 2,149 commercial motor vehicles placed out of service, 1,355 (63.1%) had stand-alone out-of-service brake violations, and 217 (10.1%) had steering axle brake out-of-service violations. Also, 1,216 (56.6%) failed the 20% defective brakes criterion, which states that a vehicle is out of service if the number of faulty brakes is equal to or greater than 20% of the service brakes on the vehicle or combination. A vehicle may have more than one violation type.

U.S. violations

In the U.S., inspectors conducted 14,692 inspections and discovered 1,900 brake-related out-of-service violations, which is a 12.9% out-of-service rate. Lining/pad violations were found on 310 power units and 172 towed units.

In Mexico, inspectors conducted 107 inspections and discovered six brake-related out-of-service violations, which is a 5.6% out-of-service rate. One power unit and five towed units had lining/pad violations.

The focus area for this year’s Brake Safety Week was on lining/pad violations. Inspectors looked for loose, missing, or worn brake lining/pads, as well as cracks, voids, and contamination. They found 382 lining/pad violations on power (tractor) units and 272 on towed (trailer) units, for a total of 654 brake lining/pad violations.

During CVSA’s Brake Safety Week in 2023, inspectors placed 10% of inspected vehicles out of service. They inspected 1,327 vehicles, and 134 had brake-related out-of-service violations. Twenty-six power units and 25 towed units had lining/pad violations.

In the U.S., of the 18,031 vehicles inspected, 2,240 (12.4%) had brake-related out-of-service violations. There were lining/pad violations on 352 power units and 236 towed units.

Next year’s Brake Safety Week is scheduled for Aug. 24-30, 2025.