UMass hosts Commercial Vehicle Safety Research Summit

The summit's goal is to decrease the amount of crashes involving large tricks and buses.
The summit's goal is to decrease the amount of crashes involving large tricks and buses. | shutterstock
The University of Massachusetts Traffic Safety Research Program, also known as UMassSafe, hosted the Commercial Vehicle Safety Research Summit in downtown Northampton at the Hotel Northampton on Nov. 9-10. 

The summit encouraged collaborations between universities, law enforcement and driver licensing agencies. The main goal of the summit is to stop crashes that involve large trucks and buses.

“Innovation is rapidly changing the transportation sector,” Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) Deputy Administrator Daphne Jefferson, who spoke at the event, said. “The federal and state governments must keep up while never losing sight of protecting the traveling public. The summit enables us to learn from each other and build partnerships with universities to realize the safety benefits of innovation and automation.”

FMCSA funded the event with a grant. The summit featured representatives for the transportation industry, state and local law enforcement and state driver licensing agency.

“We are really excited about bringing this unique grouping of safety stakeholders to discuss ways to prevent crashes involving large trucks and buses while forging partnerships and sharing best practices with each other,” UMassSafe Director Michael Knodler said.