The Truck Enforcement Unit of the Houston Police Department (HPD) cracked down recently on unsafe big rigs on local freeways, conducting surprise truck inspections that netted several safety violations.
According to the Click2Houston.com Web site, the HPD and city of Houston are trying to send a message to truckers: Keep your rig in safe working condition or face hefty fines and penalties.
While officers found one truck with an unsecured load, poorly inflated tires and worn brakes were some of the other serious violations found during 47-point inspections of commercial trucks.
Houston Mayor Bill White said he is committed to getting unsafe big rigs off the highways, especially in the wake of several recent tragic truck accidents, the Web site reported.
``Some of the things we've seen today-people who don't inflate their tires, a truck where most of the brakes were out-they're a real danger to the public and we want to send a clear signal: That's unacceptable,'' Mr. White said. He added that the city's aim wasn't to interfere with commerce, but rather to ``make sure that Houstonians are safe.''
During the inspections, nine drivers received multiple citations.
Click2Houston.com reported that last year the truck enforcement division issued about 22,000 citations. The most common violations included bad brakes, bad tires and unsecured loads.