The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has granted exemptions to two companies, allowing them to operate their commercial motor vehicles with a flashing brake light system.
In two separate notices that are scheduled to be published on Wednesday, April 16, FMCSA approved exemption requests from Coffeyville Resources Crude Transportation and Casey’s Services Company. Both exemptions are set to run through April 16, 2030.
Coffeyville and Casey’s each asked the agency to allow it to operate commercial motor vehicles equipped with a module manufactured by Intellistop.
The Intellistop module is designed to pulse the required rear clearance, identification and brake lamps from a lower-level lighting intensity to a higher-level lighting intensity four times in two seconds when the brakes are applied and then return the lights to a steady-burning state while the brakes remain engaged.
In 2022, FMCSA rejected Intellistop’s request for an industry-wide exemption, calling it “too broad.” Since then, however, the agency has granted several individual motor carrier exemptions using the Intellistop technology. Brent Higgins Trucking, DJS Fundraising, Encore Flooring and Building Products, Gemini Motor Transport, Meiborg Bros and JM Bozeman Enterprise all received similar exemptions in 2024.
“While the agency determined that the scope of the exemption Intellistop sought was too broad to ensure that an equivalent level of safety would be achieved, the agency explained that individual motor carrier applications for exemption may be more closely aligned with FMCSA authorities,” the agency said in notices for Coffeyville and Casey’s. “Exemptions more limited in scope would allow the agency to ensure compliance with all relevant FMCSA regulations, because the individual exemptee would be easily identifiable and its compliance with applicable regulations could be monitored …”
Coffeyville operates a fleet of 185 commercial motor vehicles, and Casey’s has 526.
Each company said in its exemption application that research has demonstrated the use of pulsating brake-activated lamps “increases the visibility of vehicles and should lead to a significant decrease in rear-end crashes.” LL
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