Federal Safety Initiatives may Reduce Accidents Involving Commercial Trucks

The Facts About Commercial Trucks Accidents

If you or someone you know has been in a motor vehicle accident with a semi truck or other commercial truck or bus, you understand that accidents involving big trucks can have big consequences. At least 5,000 people are killed each year in wrecks involving large commercial trucks, like semi tractor-trailers (aka "18-wheelers" or "big rigs") and commercial buses. Big trucks are involved in four percent of motor vehicle accidents that produce injuries and in more than 12.5% of vehicular accidents that cause death.

Common Causes of Commercial Trucks Accidents

People who have suffered severe personal injury or have endured fatalities among their loved ones, as the result of accidents with big trucks, can be amazed to discover that basic safety equipment on the truck, like turn signals or speedometers, were either inoperable or severely compromised. Amazement can turn to anger when you find that a truck was grossly overloaded, impairing the steering and braking systems, or that the truck driver was impaired by the influence of some substance or had a terrible safety record.

Commercial Trucks Safety Laws

An accident attorney who practices truck accident cases can often discover a great deal of information about a driver's or carrier's prior trucking wrecks and safety violations. The federal Department of Transportation (DOT) administers safety laws affecting both commercial motor carriers or trucking companies and also drivers with commercial drivers' licenses (CDLs), who drive big rigs and commercial buses. DOT safety regulations address truck equipment, inspections, limitations on truck drivers' work hours, records of semi drivers' health, and the careful and detailed maintenance of a CDL driver's safety history, among other things.

In spite of concerted DOT efforts, common industry violations slip by and continue to cause catastrophic automobile accidents with innocent motorists who share the road with big truck violators. With the incidence of fatal semi truck accidents still rising, DOT has been forced in recent years to initiate more innovative programs aimed at reducing violations of trucking safety laws.

Commercial Vehicles Accident Prevention Analysis

One of the latest is Comprehensive Safety Analysis 2010 (CSA 2010), a Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) initiative to improve the safety of commercial motor vehicles (CMVs) and reduce the occurrence of trucking-related crashes, injuries and fatalities. CSA 2010 presents a new plan for compliance review (CR) and enforcement, allowing FMCSA and state agencies that support its efforts to check more carriers, contact them earlier, and identify and address safety problems before accidents happen.

FMCSA's Successful Accident Prevention Measures

Other recent federal efforts at improving truck safety and protecting motorists from big truck accidents have shown improving success rates. For example, the FMCSA's annual Drug and Alcohol Strike Force Sweep targets truck drivers who don't pass mandatory drug and alcohol testing, along with carriers who don't comply with federal regulations requiring them to establish routine driver testing programs for intoxicating substances and carriers who continue to use truck drivers who've tested positive for drugs/alcohol.

FMCSA investigators find violators by reviewing driver safety records maintained by carriers. During the two-week Strike Force Sweep that began in late June, 2010, the FMCSA took 109 commercial truck and bus drivers off the road and initiated enforcement actions against 175 motor carriers. A similar sweep conducted in September, 2009, suspended the driving privileges of 77 drivers and cited 87 carriers.

CSA 2010 is designed to streamline FMCSA's ability to efficiently review compliance, to improve accuracy in measuring safety performance, and to enable FMCSA to conduct interventions that are closely-tailored to address specific safety compliance problems. DOT plans to have the program fully operable by the end of 2010, to "establish a new nationwide system for making the roads safer for motor carriers and the public alike." You can read more about CSA 2010 at http://csa2010.fmcsa.dot.gov/about.

Had a Commercial Truck Accident?

If you or someone you know has been injured or killed in an accident with a semi tractor-trailer or commercial bus that was caused by a carrier's or a driver's safety violation, you should immediately seek legal advice from an experienced personal injury attorney or accident lawyer who handles trucking accident cases. You may be entitled to compensation for your injuries or for the death of your loved one, including medical expenses, lost present and future earnings, money for pain and suffering, possible punitive damages, and other reparations.

In addition, every effort to obtain compensation from wrongdoers in the trucking industry makes a step toward making the roads safer for all motorists. If the carelessness of a truck driver or a trucking carrier has harmed you, don't let them get away with it. Call a personal injury lawyer who deals with big truck negligence; your action might prevent a terrible accident from happening to someone else.

All content on Accidents.com is for informational purposes only and is NOT intended as legal or medical advice. Please seek advice from a professional on any related topics.

Tags:  Commercial Truck Accidents · Deadliest Highways · Safety and Prevention · Truck Accidents