Interchange June 2022
Vol. 50, Iss. 6
New brake testing technology implemented
Photo: Mark Horan
Port of Entry using special apparatus to check brake performance
PBBT technology provides valuable safety information to commercial carrier inspectors.
By Mark Horan Port of Entry authorities are making good use out of a new apparatus called a Performance Based Brake Tester, also known as PBBT. Once vehicles drive onto it, the machine spins the vehicle’s wheels and measures resistance while brakes are applied. The machine then provides a computer-generated percentage of the brake performance for each axle and each wheel end or brake on that vehicle. Typically, commercial motor vehicle inspectors are only able to look at the brake components and take measure-
ments when conducting standard inspections, but that doesn’t tell them how well the brakes are actually working. The PBBT gives inspectors a much better idea of how a vehicle’s brakes are performing on the road. “We’re checking brake performance on vehicles that we’ve never checked before,” said Lt. Dustin Ragon with the Wyoming Highway Patrol Commercial Carrier section. “With this machine, we’re able to get a lot of unsafe vehicles off the roadway that normally would just go unchecked.” Continued on page 3
Photo: Mark Horan
PBBT technology new to WYDOT, WHP
The Performance Based Brake Tester outside the I80 Port of Entry in Cheyenne.
