Heavy Vehicle Pedal Misapplication; An Unexpected Danger

If you have ever accidentally hit the gas when you intended to hit the brake, you can appreciate how dangerous this could be in a commercial bus or 18-Wheeler. This is the subject of a new investigative report by the National Transportation Safety Board.

Evidently the problem of pedal misapplication has been particularly troublesome for school bus operators. There has been a substantial incidence of stopped school buses accelerating suddenly, with the vehicle operators reporting brake failure. NTSB investigation has consistently revealed not only no brake failure but in fact no evidence of application of braking at all. The operators have been shown to have inadvertantly pushed the gas not the brake.

The National Highway Transportation Safety Board has been tasked with coming up with new technologies to eliminate pedal misapplication and to prevent sudden school bus or heavy vehicle acceleration from a standstill.