Nearly 85% of commercial vehicles inspected during the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance’s (CVSA) 2026 Brake Safety Week had no brake-related out-of-service violations. Inspectors examined 15,528 vehicles across the United States, Canada, and Mexico, with 13,159 clearing the brake inspections without a condition requiring removal from service.
CVSA released the results on November 6 following the August 23-29 enforcement campaign. The remaining 2,369 vehicles were placed out of service for brake-related violations, producing an overall rate of 15.3%.
U.S. Inspections Account for Most of the Campaign
Inspectors in 51 jurisdictions participated in this year’s Brake Safety Week, including 14,165 inspections conducted in the United States. Of those, 2,134 vehicles were placed out of service for brake violations, representing a 15.1% rate.
Canada recorded 1,306 inspections and 232 out-of-service vehicles, a rate of 17.8%. Mexico reported 57 inspections, with three vehicles placed out of service.
Most inspections followed the North American Standard Level I procedure, which examines both driver operating requirements and vehicle mechanical condition. These comprehensive inspections accounted for 14,150 checks, or 91% of the campaign total.
During the brake portion, inspectors examined adjustment mechanisms, slack adjusters, linings, pads, chambers, hoses, and air tanks. The procedure also includes checks of air pressure, air loss, emergency and parking brakes, tractor protection systems and anti-lock braking equipment.
Defective Service Brakes Lead to Out-of-Service Findings
Nearly half of the vehicles removed from service met CVSA’s 20% defective brake criterion. Inspectors identified 1,176 vehicles with out-of-service conditions affecting at least 20% of their service brakes, accounting for 49.6% of all brake-related out-of-service cases.
Brake hoses and tubing were another significant source of violations, with 600 recorded during the campaign. Inspectors also documented 145 violations involving excessive air loss, 92 involving steering axle brake linings, and 119 involving other steering axle conditions.
An additional 759 out-of-service violations involved other brake-system components. These findings could include problems with air tanks, tractor protection systems, low-air warning devices, emergency brakes, and hydraulic or electric braking equipment.
CVSA noted that a single vehicle or combination can have more than one violation, so the individual violation counts should not be interpreted as separate vehicles.
Brake Drums and Rotors Receive Additional Attention
Brake drums and rotors were the designated inspection focus for 2026. Inspectors recorded 141 violations involving these components, resulting in 64 vehicles being placed out of service.
Air disc brakes accounted for 97 violations, including broken rotors, rusted rotors, and metal-to-metal contact. Inspectors also recorded 36 broken drum violations involving S-cam brakes and eight violations involving hydraulic brakes.
The findings provided a closer look at component damage that can affect braking performance. Although drum and rotor violations represented a relatively small portion of the overall results, the additional inspection emphasis allowed CVSA to collect more detailed information about these conditions.
Brake Performance Testing Identifies Additional Deficiencies
Twelve U.S. jurisdictions also used performance-based brake testers to measure overall vehicle braking efficiency.
Inspectors conducted 657 tests using the equipment, with 29 vehicles failing to meet the required minimum braking efficiency of 43.5%. Those vehicles were placed out of service, representing a 4.41% failure rate among those tested.
Performance-based testing evaluates the braking capability of a vehicle or combination, providing a different assessment from examining individual mechanical components. The results apply specifically to vehicles tested with this equipment and are not a separate nationwide failure rate.
Next Brake Safety Week Scheduled for April 2027
The latest results show that most commercial vehicles inspected during the campaign did not have brake-related out-of-service violations. However, more than 2,300 vehicles required corrective action before they could return to service.
CVSA continues to emphasize regular inspections and preventive maintenance throughout the year. The organization encourages motor carriers and professional drivers to address brake defects promptly rather than waiting for scheduled enforcement campaigns.
The next Brake Safety Week is scheduled for April 18-24, 2027, moving the annual event from its August dates in 2026 to the spring.
The campaign is part of CVSA’s Operation Airbrake program, which combines enforcement, inspections, and education to improve commercial vehicle brake safety throughout North America.
The TDUSA editorial team creates practical, driver-focused content covering trucking news, industry updates, safety, regulations, and career information for professional truck drivers across the United States. Each article is built to reflect real-world experience, industry developments, and information drivers can use on and off the road.
Last Updated: November 11, 2026
Source: The Trucker
