Trucking-News with Ruthann Trucking-News this week involves Inspections, Crash ratings, Woman of the year and Autonomous Braking Systems. Also drug smuggling is not worth the time you will do. Ruthann puts her spin on the latest news in the Trucking Industry while putting up with Troy. Trucking news with Ruthann The science behind automatic braking From fiddling with the radio to just plain daydreaming, there are tons of reasons you might briefly lose focus in traffic and risk rear-ending the car in front of you. And that’s exactly where autonomous braking comes into play. Automatic braking systems (like Volvo’s City Safety) use infrared sensors usually built into the windshield to track your position amid other vehicles. If you start approaching another car too quickly, the system taps on the brakes for you, either slowing you down or bringing you to an all-out stop. DOT checking a rig IIHS finds reduced claims in autobraking cars While there’s plenty of debate and ambiguity surrounding forward collision avoidance technology, autonomous braking seems to be one example of it that’s making headway. In a recent study, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) took an in-depth look at Volvo’s City Safety feature and revealed some favorable results. When compared to SUVs that didn’t have collision avoidance technology, Volvo’s XC60 SUVs (equipped with City Safety) had: 33 percent fewer bodily injury claims 15 percent fewer property damage claims 20 percent fewer collision claims And for Volvo’s S60 midsize sedans, City Safety resulted in claims reductions of: 18 percent for bodily injury 16 percent for property damage 9 percent for collision Smuggling Drugs in Semi trucks SALTON CITY, Calif. – El Centro Sector Border Patrol agents from the Indio Station assigned to the Highway 86 checkpoint simultaneously arrested two men suspected of smuggling drugs hidden in their trucks on Friday. The incident occurred at approximately 12:10 p.m., when two truck drivers approached the checkpoint driving respectively a red 1999 semi-truck and a black 1994 semi-truck. A Border Patrol detection canine alerted to both of the semi-trucks during a pre-primary inspection. Agents referred the men to the secondary inspection area for a closer examination. After an extensive search, agents discovered 15 bundles of cocaine hidden inside the rear axle compartment of each semi-truck. https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/local-media-release/border-patrol-stops-2-trucks-drugs-loaded-rear-axles