In many ways, the trucking industry is about connections, but one is not that obvious: National Trucking Week and “Jake” brakes.
National Trucking Week celebrates the efficient and unobtrusive work men and women in the industry undertake daily to provide us with essentials year round. Jake brakes, a nickname for engine brakes, use engine compression to slow down heavy trucks.
Engine brakes are also extremely efficient, but may not be so unobtrusive, especially when not properly muffled.
The connection between the two isn’t about noisy celebrations and brakes. It’s about safety.
Engine brakes switch the engine from producing to absorbing power through air compression and release via the truck’s exhaust system. The sudden release of pressure can create a loud “rat-a-tat” sound.
Trucks also have wheel service brakes, but engine brakes are purposely built to control the speed of a heavy vehicle on downhill grades, while service brakes are better at sudden emergency stops.
Engine brakes are an important safety feature on commercial trucks, which can easily weigh from 40,700 kilograms and up when loaded.
Few of us would benefit if truck drivers couldn’t use them.
In fact, the inventor of the original Jacobs’ Engine Brake (the source of the nickname) developed the technology after firsthand experience with an Indiana truck on a steep, 35-mile downhill section of California highway, shot wheel brakes, and a near-collision with a freight train in 1931.
For the public, there can be an annoyance factor with engine brakes. As a result, noise bylaws may prohibit the unnecessary use of engine brakes within residential areas, although city driving rarely requires their use.
Not all engine brakes are that noisy – especially on newer trucks, trucks with new or higher end mufflers, and properly maintained trucks.
The noise level of a truck with a better quality muffler is 80-83 decibels from 15 metre away, similar to a telephone dial tone.
Without a muffler, the noise level is 96-101 decibels, similar to a chainsaw. At that level, the focus should be on inspecting potentially defective mufflers, rather than on prohibiting the use of brakes.
This brings me back to National Trucking Week, held in Canada this year from Sept. 4 to 10.
This week, please think about all the trucks reliably and efficiently transporting groceries and other goods to our communities, and in the bigger picture, transporting many of the resources that British Columbia and Canada trade with the rest of the world.
The vast majority of truck drivers do this safely and responsibly, including using their engine brakes for what they were designed to do.
Louise Yako is the president and CEO of the B.C. Transportation Association, which is a member-based, non-profit, non-partisan advocacy organization. It is the recognized voice of B.C.’s motor carrier industry, representing over 1,200 truck and motor coach fleets and over 250 industry suppliers. BCTA members operate over 13,000 vehicles, employ 26,000 people, and generate over $2 billion in revenue annually in B.C.
