Nebraska weigh stations deploy tech that can detect a semi’s flat tire at 75 MPH

The Nebraska State Patrol (NSP) recently installed new technology that can detect a semi truck’s flat tire as the vehicle travels on the interstate.

On June 25, NSP announced the deployment of a new technology system designed to detect safety issues with commercial vehicles traveling on I-80 near the Waverly and North Platte weigh stations.

According to NSP, the new system “includes technology embedded in the pavement of I-80 that detects a flat tire on a commercial vehicle, while the vehicle is moving at interstate speeds. The system then flags that vehicle and requires the driver to exit at the weigh station for the flat tire to be addressed.”

Also included with the technology upgrades is a camera system that can read license plates of commercial vehicles as well as the DOT number of each vehicle before the vehicle reaches the weigh station. The system then checks for safety issues associated with the truck or company.

NSP says that the technology allows most trucks that are in compliance with safety regulations to avoid a stop at the weigh station.

“Really the goal of the new technology is two-fold,” said Lt. Mike Maytum, of the NSP Carrier Enforcement Division. “First, we want to identify vehicles that are unsafe, stop them, and make sure that before they leave, it’s safe to do so. The second piece of that is we want to allow companies that are doing a good job, to continue to do a good job and let them move on down the road to get goods and services moved-on to other places around the U.S.”

“We now have a system embedded in the concrete that takes a read of those commercial vehicle tires as they’re traveling down the road at 75 mile per hour and tells us if there’s a flat tire,” said Lt. Maytum. “We can stop that vehicle, verify that information, and then see that that vehicle is repaired properly before moving on down the roadway.”

NSP has plans to install similar systems at the Nebraska City weigh station on Highway 2 in the near future.