• 01
  • June
    2011

Last time, we talked about a federal safety panel hosted by the National Transportation Safety Board that addressed commercial bus and truck accidents. We began to discuss the safety measures proposed by the current administration which focus on tackling the issue of driver fatigue. Driver fatigue is a major cause of commercial accidents and is the likely cause of a fatal tour bus crash in Virginia that occurred over the holiday weekend.

The current administration has proposed a few ideas to curb driver fatigue. The first is to equip commercial trucks and buses with devices that record the number of hours drivers spend behind the wheel. The second point of the proposal also deals with the number of hours drivers are on the road and would reduce the daily limit of hours behind the wheel from 11 hours to 10. In addition, the proposed measure would require more time off at the end of the weekly driving limit and would limit the entire work day to 14 hours.

The trucking industry argues the proposed changes would be too costly and would not bring about improved safety. In opposition, safety advocates argue the administration is taking too much time to enact the changes. The two groups are also arguing over whether Congress should grant states the authority to expand truck weight and length limits on interstate highways. The trucking industry would like to increase the weight limit to 100,000 pounds.

The trucking industry believes that larger and longer trucks will produce cost savings, but safety advocates warn while there may not be as many crashes there may be more damage. In 2009, ten people were killed on an interstate in Oklahoma when a tractor-trailer slammed into a line of one dozen vehicles. The weight of the semi was 40,000 pounds. The cause of the accident was driver fatigue.

Source: The Associated Press, "Panel to focus on deadly truck, bus accidents," 5/10/11