Long hours on the road. Stressful situations. Days away from home. Trucking can be a tough job. It’s not for everyone. 30,000 tractor-trailer drivers are needed across the U.S. right now, the American Trucking Association (ATA) estimates. Another 100,000 will be needed every year for the next decade. Economic growth leads to more goods being shipped [...]
Federal Regulations require that no truck driver shall operate a vehicle while the driver's ability is impaired or is likely to become impaired through fatigue. This means that a driver whose ability to safely operate his truck is impaired because he is tired or his ability is likely to become impaired because he is tired [...]
The fall has arrived and soon we will be in winter. It is this time of year that greater care is needed when traveling on our roadways. Often, as I travel on Pacific Northwest freeways, I watch Trucks go speeding by me without regard to the weather conditions. Rain conditions require defensive driver practices. [...]
Logging trucks traveling on our highways and public roadways are a common site in the Pacific Northwest. They are generally traveling with a full load of logs. A fully loaded logging truck must be operated by a skilled and trained driver. Defensive driving practices must be used and road and weather conditions must be [...]
In 2008, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), there were over 4,000 deaths caused by accidents involving large trucks. Most of the deaths, approximately 2,760 were passenger vehicle occupants. Commons causes of large truck accidents include: *Speeding *Overloaded Trucks and Trailers * Sleep deprivation * Inadequte training * Failure to have a [...]
With the summer months upon us, the hot weather can cause truck tire retreads to separate. Flying tire parts are commonly called "gators", because the shredded tire parts fly at vehicles behind the truck and "bite" at very high speeds. Heavy commercial motor vehicles are heavier, with more miles on the tires than most passenger vehicles. [...]
Motor carriers are supposed to train their drivers. That training should provide the appropriate skills and knowledge which would allow them to avoid preventable a crash— which they call a "preventable accident." In the trucking industry, a "preventable accident" is a crash or collision in which a truck driver or motor carrier failed to act in [...]
Recently, I was driving on I-5 in the Pacific Northwest. As is usual for this time of the year, it was raining, and the road was slick. The sky was gray with clouds. Time and time again, big rigs would come up behind my vehicle at high speed, then race past me, spraying water. I was [...]
