List of Rules & Regulations While Using a Reflective Tape on Trucks and Trailers

by GNA EMarketing Marketing

Materials which have retro-reflective properties are quite underestimated but the truth is they are truly the unsung “heroes” of the world today, ensuring safety in the environment, be it in a construction zone or the traffic area. The ability of these has enabled many objects to become visible or even brighter at low light situations such as road signs, posts, barriers, or trucks,and trailers, greatly decreasing the likelihood of life-threatening accidents.

So, here, we have a list of certain rules and regulations with regard to the use of a reflective tape in a truck or a trailer. Take a look.

Color & Measurements: First of all, let’s start with color. Reflective tapes appear in various colors but it is recommended that you stick to red or white, or more particularly, with alternating sections of red and white. Besides the colors, the next thing to take into consideration is the size. You should know that you can trim it in any case of obstruction. It should only be in two kinds of widths- 2,3, and 4 inches.

Placement of the Tape: Now it is not only enough to cover your commercial vehicle like a truck or trailer with such reflective sheeting materials. You should place the tape in areas where the material would be most effective, i.e, where visibility is needed to avoid severe accidents such as the upper rear section, lower rear section, and sides of the vehicle.

Sides of the Vehicle: For the sides of the truck or the trailer, you should try to place your reflective tape in a horizontal manner, starting and ending as closest to the rear and front as much as possible. The tape might not be compulsory but you can have them at regular intervals with even spaces. But make sure that the total length of the tape should be approximately half the length of the vehicle.

Lower Rear of the Vehicle: The whole width of the lower rear section must have a reflective tape. Position it horizontally, again bringing the beginning and ending close to the edges. Also, you should make it a point to have the strip of the tape’s centerline should be somewhere between 15 to 60 inches above the surface of the road while the vehicle is empty or as close to the measurement as may deem possible.

Upper Rear Side of the Vehicle: Here, the color of the tape must be white and you must use two pairs of the tape, placed both vertically and horizontally on the right as well as left upper corners, again nearing the edge as much as possible. It should result in two inverted ‘L’s covering both the upper side corners.

Maintenance: Finally, the reflective tape would be considered effective only when it is visible. Investing in the right tape and installing it in the right way are not enough. You have to take out time and clean it from time to time. This will make sure that your reflective materials function properly. Dirty ones will not catch light as efficiently as cleaner ones, thereby leading to reduced visibility. So, another crucial rule of using such materials with retro-reflective properties is to maintain them on a regular basis.

Therefore, if you have purchased or are thinking of purchasing such reflective materials, make sure you are aware of all the rules and regulations pertaining to their usage.