Parts and Accessories Necessary for Safe Operation; Daimler Trucks North America LLC Application for Exemption |
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Topics: Daimler AG
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Cathy F. Gautreaux
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
31 January 2018
[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 21 (Wednesday, January 31, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 4543-4545]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-01943]
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DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration
[Docket No. FMCSA-2017-0176]
Parts and Accessories Necessary for Safe Operation; Daimler
Trucks North America LLC Application for Exemption
AGENCY: Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), DOT.
ACTION: Notice of final disposition; grant of application for
exemption.
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SUMMARY: The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA)
announces its decision to grant Daimler Trucks North America LLC's
(DTNA) application for a limited 5-year exemption allowing motor
carriers operating commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) manufactured by the
company to use an Attention Assist and Lane Departure Warning system
camera mounted lower in the windshield than is currently permitted. The
Agency has determined that lower placement of the Attention Assist and
Lane Departure Warning system camera would not have an adverse impact
on safety and that adherence to the terms and conditions of the
exemption would achieve a level of safety equivalent to or greater than
the level of safety provided by the regulation.
DATES: This exemption is effective February 1, 2018 and ending January
31, 2023.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Jose R. Cestero, Vehicle and
Roadside Operations Division, Office of Carrier, Driver, and Vehicle
Safety, MC-PSV, (202) 366-5541, Federal Motor Carrier Safety
Administration, 1200 New Jersey Avenue SE, Washington, DC 20590-0001.
Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or
comments submitted to notice requesting public comments on the
exemption application, go to www.regulations.gov at any time or visit
Room W12-140 on the ground level of the West Building, 1200 New Jersey
Avenue SE, Washington, DC, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., ET, Monday
through Friday, except Federal holidays. The on-line Federal document
management system is available 24 hours each day, 365 days each year.
The docket number is listed at the beginning of this notice.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Section 4007 of the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century
(TEA- 21) [Pub. L. 105-178, June 9, 1998, 112 Stat. 401] amended 49
U.S.C. 31315 and 31136(e) to provide authority to grant exemptions from
the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSRs). On August 20,
2004, FMCSA published a final rule (69 FR 51589) implementing section
4007. Under this rule, FMCSA must publish a notice of each exemption
request in the Federal Register (49 CFR 381.315(a)). The Agency must
provide the public with an opportunity to inspect the information
relevant to the application, including any safety analyses that have
been conducted. The Agency must also provide an opportunity for public
comment on the request.
The Agency reviews the safety analyses and the public comments and
determines whether granting the exemption would likely achieve a level
of safety equivalent to or greater than the level that would be
achieved by the current regulation (49 CFR 381.305). The decision of
the Agency must be published in the Federal Register (49 CFR
381.315(b)). If the Agency denies the request, it must state the reason
for doing so. If the decision is to grant the exemption, the notice
must specify the person or class of persons receiving the exemption and
the regulatory provision or provisions from which an exemption is
granted. The notice must specify the effective period of the exemption
(up to 5 years) and explain the terms and conditions of the exemption.
The exemption may be renewed (49 CFR 381.315(c) and 49 CFR 381.300(b)).
DTNA's Application for Exemption
DTNA applied for an exemption from 49 CFR 393.60(e)(1) to allow an
Attention Assist and Lane Departure Warning system camera to be mounted
lower in the windshield than is currently permitted by the Agency's
regulations in order to utilize a mounting location that allows optimal
functionality of the system camera. A copy of the application is
included in the docket referenced at the beginning of this notice.
Section 393.60(e)(1)(i) of the FMCSRs prohibits the obstruction of
the driver's field of view by devices mounted on the
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interior of the windshield. Antennas and similar devices must not be
mounted more than 152 mm (6 inches) below the upper edge of the
windshield, and outside the driver's sight lines to the road and
highway signs and signals. However, Sec. 393.60(e)(1)(i) does not
apply to vehicle safety technologies, as defined in Sec. 393.5, that
include ``a fleet-related incident management system, performance or
behavior management system, speed management system, forward collision
warning or mitigations system, active cruise control system, and
transponder.'' Section 393.60(e)(1)(ii) requires devices with safety
technologies to be mounted (1) not more than 100 mm (4 inches) below
the upper edge of the area swept by the windshield wipers; or (2) not
more than 175 mm (7 inches) above the lower edge of the area swept by
the windshield wipers; and (3) outside the driver's sight lines to the
road and highway signs and signals.
DTNA states that the exemption, in addition to providing attention
assist and lane departure warning functions, would allow DTNA to enable
additional safety features in the future that will provide further
safety benefits such as traffic sign recognition, active lane keeping,
video capture, and intelligent headlight control. DTNA states that the
Attention Assist and Lane Departure Warning system camera will become a
critical enabler for future technology such as autonomous vehicles. The
camera housing is approximately 102 mm (4.01 inches) wide by 177 mm
(6.97 inches) tall, and will be mounted in the approximate center and
near the top of the windshield with the bottom edge of the camera
system approximately 8.5 inches below the upper edge of the area swept
by the windshield wipers, outside of the driver's (and passenger's)
normal sight lines to the road ahead, highway signs and signals, and
all mirrors. This location will allow for the optimal functionality of
the advanced safety systems supported by the camera. DTNA states that
mounting the camera in this location does not significantly obstruct
the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard No. 104, ``Windshield wiping
and washing systems,'' specified zones A, B, or C for passenger cars of
1730 or more mm overall width.\1\
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\1\ FMVSS No. 104 does not specify minimum swept areas for
trucks and buses.
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DTNA has installed prototype camera housings in fifteen DTNA
conventional type vehicles and assessed the impact of the camera on
driver and passenger visibility on over 50 CDL drivers and over 900,000
miles. This includes over-the-road mileage accumulation through a
mixture of mountain, freeway, highway, and city routes. DTNA states
that all drivers and passengers agreed that there was no noticeable
obstruction to the normal sight lines to the road ahead, highway signs,
signals, or any mirrors.
Without the proposed exemption, DTNA states that the customer will
be unable to use Attention Assist and Lane Departure Warning system
cameras on DTNA commercial motor vehicles due to concerns that (1) its
``customers may be in violation of the current regulation,'' and (2)
``the camera will not perform adequately to provide the safety benefit
intended by the systems.''
The exemption would apply to all CMV operators driving DTNA
vehicles with the Attention Assist and Lane Departure Warning systems
camera installed. DTNA believes that mounting the Attention Assist and
Lane Departure Warning system camera within 7 inches below the upper
edge of the windshield will allow for optimal functionality of the
advance safety systems while providing visibility of the road ahead,
highway signs, signals, and all mirrors.
Comments
FMCSA published a notice of the application in the Federal Register
on June 26, 2017, and asked for public comment (82 FR 28930). No
comments were received.
FMCSA Decision
The FMCSA has evaluated the DTNA exemption application. The
Attention Assist and Lane Departure Warning system camera is
approximately 7 inches tall, and is mounted near the top of the center
of the windshield with the bottom of the camera system located
approximately 8.5 inches below the top of the area swept by the
windshield wipers. The camera system needs to be mounted in this
location to properly perform its functions of monitoring the driver and
the roadway for lane markings. The size of the camera system precludes
mounting it (1) higher in the windshield, and (2) within 4 inches from
the top of the area swept by the windshield wipers to comply with Sec.
393.60(e)(1)(ii)(A).
The Agency believes that granting the temporary exemption to allow
the placement of the Attention Assist and Lane Departure Warning system
camera lower than currently permitted by the Agency's regulations will
provide a level of safety that is equivalent to, or greater than, the
level of safety achieved without the exemption because (1) based on the
technical information available, there is no indication that the
Attention Assist and Lane Departure Warning system camera would
obstruct drivers' views of the roadway, highway signs and surrounding
traffic; (2) generally, trucks and buses have an elevated seating
position that greatly improves the forward visual field of the driver,
and any impairment of available sight lines would be minimal; and (3)
the mounting location 8.5 inches below the top of the area swept by the
windshield wipers and out of the driver's normal sightline will be
reasonable and enforceable at roadside. In addition, the Agency
believes that the use of Attention Assist and Lane Departure Warning
system cameras by fleets is likely to improve the overall level of
safety to the motoring public.
This action is consistent with previous Agency action permitting
the placement of similarly-sized devices on CMVs outside the driver's
sight lines to the road and highway signs and signals. FMCSA is not
aware of any evidence that the installation of other vehicle safety
technologies mounted on the interior of the windshield has resulted in
any degradation in safety.
Terms and Conditions for the Exemption
The Agency hereby grants the exemption for a 5-year period,
beginning January 31, 2018 and ending January 31, 2023. During the
temporary exemption period, motor carriers will be allowed to operate
CMVs manufactured by DTNA equipped with the Attention Assist and Lane
Departure Warning system camera mounted in the approximate center of
the windshield such that the bottom edge of the camera is not more than
8.5 inches below the top of the area swept by the windshield wipers and
outside the driver's sight lines to all mirrors, highway signs,
signals, and view of the road ahead. The exemption will be valid for 5
years unless rescinded earlier by FMCSA. The exemption will be
rescinded if: (1) Motor carriers and/or commercial motor vehicles fail
to comply with the terms and conditions of the exemption; (2) the
exemption has resulted in a lower level of safety than was maintained
before it was granted; or (3) continuation of the exemption would not
be consistent with the goals and objectives of 49 U.S.C. 31136(e) and
31315(b).
Interested parties possessing information that would demonstrate
that motor carriers operating DTNA CMVs equipped with the Attention
Assist and Lane Departure Warning system camera are not achieving the
requisite statutory level of safety should immediately notify FMCSA.
The Agency will evaluate any such information and, if safety is being
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compromised or if the continuation of the exemption is not consistent
with 49 U.S.C. 31136(e) and 31315(b), will take immediate steps to
revoke the exemption.
Preemption
In accordance with 49 U.S.C. 31315(d), as implemented by 49 CFR
381.600, during the period this exemption is in effect, no State shall
enforce any law or regulation applicable to interstate commerce that
conflicts with or is inconsistent with this exemption with respect to a
firm or person operating under the exemption. States may, but are not
required to, adopt the same exemption with respect to operations in
intrastate commerce.
Issued on: January 25, 2018.
Cathy F. Gautreaux,
Deputy Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2018-01943 Filed 1-30-18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4910-EX-P