Articles Tagged with Truck Accidents

Kentucky motorists may enjoy more safety on the road after unannounced inspections took nearly 2,000 commercial trucks off the road. The effort was part of an annual drive by the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance. An announced event is scheduled to take place on Sept. 7, 2017. The purpose of these inspections is to reduce the risk of truck accidents caused by failure to comply with brake standards.

The one-day event featured 9,524 inspections in 33 states and 10 provinces in Canada. There were 1,146 trucks sidelined for brake issues. Another 843 commercial vehicles were placed out ofservice for unstated violations.

The CVSA stated that, of the trucks that were inspected, 4,635 were required to be outfitted with anti-lock brake systems. Eight percent of these vehicles had ABS violations that warranted removal. ABS systems require maintenance to remain effective.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has issued a rule that contains changes to the commercial driver’s license training requirements. The rule became effective on June 5, 2017, but drivers, companies and training organizations have until February 2020 to be in full compliance with the new law. The training requirements will only apply to new drivers who receive their CDLs on or after Feb. 7, 2020. These changes are seen as a benefit to overall driver safety in Kentucky and throughout the United States.

The rule was delayed five months due to a regulatory review by the Trump administration. It benefits CDL training and improves safety and consistency by creating a core curriculum. It also requires some behind-the-wheel training and mandates that applicants receive training only from people and companies registered and approved by the FMCSA. Companies that have their own trainers and training facilities will also have to be in compliance with this aspect of the rule.

The rule was also altered from its original version, and one change has received criticism from those in the industry. Initially the rule required 30 hours of behind-the-wheel training, but the number has been removed.

Motorists in Kentucky are more likely to see semi-tractor trailers and buses undergoing roadside inspections between June 6 and June 8 as inspectors step up their enforcement efforts during the annual International Roadcheck safety initiative. The effort is organized by the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance with the goal of encouraging truck and bus drivers and commercial vehicle operators to observe road safety laws and Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration regulations.

The CVSA asks inspectors to pay particular attention to a different aspect of truck safety during International Roadcheck each year. Brake violations were the focus during the safety blitz in 2016, and this year inspectors will be focusing their efforts on cargo safety. Drivers who fail to properly secure their loads can expect a citation, but the CVSA has produced a flyer containing tips about securing cargo properly to help drivers and truck operators avoid having their vehicles ordered out of service.

Inspectors generally carry out North American Standard Level I inspections during International Roadcheck. These inspections are extremely thorough, and 21.5 percent of the more than 42,000 trucks and buses pulled over during the 2016 safety event were ordered out of service because of safety violations. Brake violations were the most common reason for ordering trucks off the road. The CVSA says that an average of about 15 commercial vehicles will be looked at during each minute of the 72-hour-long safety push.

Truck drivers in Kentucky and around the country with body mass indexes of 35 or higher may be more likely to have to undergo sleep apnea testing after the U.S. Supreme Court announced on April 3 that it would not hear a case challenging the legality of such testing. The litigation, which was filed by a truck driver, claimed that the Americans with Disabilities Act protected American workers from mandatory sleep apnea testing.

Obstructive sleep apnea is a serious condition that interferes with sleep patterns and can lead to extreme fatigue. Obesity increases the chances of developing the condition considerably, and many truck operators around the country ask drivers with high body mass indexes to take tests costing about $1,200 each. The goal of theses tests is to keep drivers who may be more likely to be involved in truck accidents caused by truck driver fatigue off the road.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration supports sleep apnea testing for obese truck drivers, and the agency’s Safety Advisory Committee and Medical Review Board have called for rules that would make the tests mandatory. However, trade groups including the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association are against compulsory sleep apnea testing and say that drowsy driving accidents are not a serious problem.

According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, a nonprofit organization, underride guards mounted on the sides of trucks in Kentucky and throughout the country offer similar safety benefits to those that are mounted on the rear of the vehicles. Regulations mandating rear underride guards are under consideration.

The IIHS did two crash tests in 2017. One was using an underride guard and the other was using a fiberglass side skirt that was not designed for underride protection. In both 35-mph crash tests, a 53-foot dry van trailer was hit in the center by a mid-size passenger car. The first test used the underride protection, and while it bent, it also prevented the car from going under the truck. In the second test, using the side skirt, the roof came off and the car became wedged under the truck. According to the IIHS, that crash probably would have been fatal for vehicle occupants.

As a result of these tests, the IIHS says that side underride guards should be mandated as well. This was the first evaluation of a side guard by the IIHS.

Driverless trucks may soon be appearing in Kentucky and across the United States. While the technology to empower self-driving tractor-trailers still needs heavy refinement, there are a number of companies working hard to be first to bring these trucks to market.

Of course, driverless trucks raise new concerns about safety and road-readiness as well. For example, an automated vehicle in a truck crash situation will need to determine through its own logic how to handle an imminent vehicle accident. For this reason, among many others, discussion of autonomous vehicles continues to center on this technology’s use as an assistance mechanism for drivers rather than as a replacement.

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration held a hearing on autonomous vehicles in the trucking industry. As an agency with a heavy focus on safety, the hearing heard testimony about several issues. One primary issue discussed was whether autonomous vehicles will allow truck drivers to work longer consecutive hours of service. Given that truck driver fatigue is already a significant safety concern, this issue prompted a range of testimony. In addition, some observers also noted that it is possible for inattentiveness and distraction to increase because of the low level of attention needed by the highly automated vehicle.

Kentucky truckers are probably aware of the annual inspection of fleets and drivers known as the International Roadcheck inspection blitz, which is conducted by the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance. The event is scheduled for June 6 through 8 and will focus on how to properly secure cargo.

Adhering to the North American Standard Level I inspections, inspectors will be ensuring all equipment and cargo on trucks is properly secured and will be thoroughly analyzing tie-downs for damage and wear. Cargo-securement violations include damaged, insufficient or loose tie-downs, failure to secure truck equipment and failure to prevent shifting/loss of cargo. To prepare for the stringent inspection event, CVSA has prepared a flyer outlining cargo securement tips. The North American Standard Level I inspections are known to be the most comprehensive inspections of both trucks and their drivers.

For the safety of themselves and other motorists, truck drivers and truck companies are required to ensure their cargo is not oversized and is properly secured. In addition, those who operate 18-wheelers should be extra vigilant when traveling around passenger vehicles and avoid improper braking, rear-end collisions, speeding and reckless driving; otherwise, they could be held liable for crash-related injuries if they cause an accident.

While there are a number of self-driving cars being tested, computer-driven semi trucks aren’t standard yet. One of the reasons for this is that it’s difficult for autonomous trucks to make deliveries. While automated vehicles seem to have little problems dealing with roadways, the maneuvering involved in parking a truck at a loading bay is still difficult.

One company based in California, Starsky Robotics, believes that it may have developed a workaround for this issue. Along with using front and side camera systems and radar, the company also uses drivers that can remotely control trucks from an office.

According to company representatives, they are not anti-truck driver. Instead, they say that they are offering a safer option for long-haul truck drivers. The way their system works is that a driver in an office is able to control the throttle, steering and transmission. That driver is able to tell what the truck is doing and where obstacles may be thanks to the truck’s cameras and radar.

Semi-tractor trailers are a ubiquitous sight on Kentucky roads and highways, and most passenger vehicle drivers understand that commercial vehicles weighing as much as 80,000 pounds should be approached with caution. Accidents involving buses and large trucks claim thousands of lives each year in the United States, and 60 percent of these fatal crashes involve an impact with the front of trucks. Sometimes these front-end collisions are caused by distracted or fatigued truck drivers braking too late or not at all, but they are most often the result of dangerous passing maneuvers.

It can take twice as long for a fully laden tractor-trailer to come to a safe stop, and emergency braking can cause large trucks to jackknife dangerously. Passenger vehicle drivers should bear this in mind when passing slow-moving trucks, and they should also remember that commercial vehicles have much larger blind spots than cars, pickup trucks or SUVs. Tailgating is a dangerous practice at any time, but the chances of suffering a serious injury increase exponentially when the vehicle being tailgated is a semi-tractor trailer.

About 10 percent of the motor vehicle crashes that took place in Kentucky in 2014 involved commercial vehicles, and the majority of these truck accidents were caused by the drivers of the passenger vehicles involved. In addition to dangerous passing maneuvers and tailgating, passenger vehicle drivers frequently cause accidents by weaving, misjudging clearances and failing to yield the right of way.

According to a recent study, commercial truck drivers in Kentucky and the rest of the country who have three or more health issues have four times the crash hazard of healthier drivers. Truckers may also find it difficult to remain healthy due to the nature of their profession, which requires long periods of sitting down.

The medical records of almost 50,000 commercial truck drivers were examined for the study. Nearly 35 percent of the truck drivers had indicators of one or more health conditions, such as low back pain, diabetes and heart disease, associated with poor driving. When the crash histories of the drivers were examined, it was discovered that drivers with at least three of the flagged conditions had an increased likelihood of having been involved in a crash.

Among all truckers, the rate of accidents that involved injuries was 29 per 100 million miles traveled. For drivers who suffered from at least three medical conditions, the rate rose to 93 per 100 million miles. Factors, such as age, amount of commercial driving experience and other elements that could have an impact on one’s driving ability, were taken into account in the calculation of the crash rates.