No matter who causes the crash, larger trucks pose larger problems for smaller cars. If this concerns you, please call senators on the Appropriations Committee now and ask them to oppose increases in truck size.
From the Truck Safety Coalition:
Urgent Action Needed Now!!
Tell Senators on the Appropriations Committee
to oppose the Shelby Amendment that would allow bigger, heavier, more dangerous trucks on our roadways
June 24, 2015
BACKGROUND:
The Senate Appropriations Committee is at a crossroads. Will Senators crumple under the weight of giant trucking companies and agree to their laundry list of demands? Or will they put you and your family first and work to improve truck safety?
The Senate Transportation Housing and Urban Development (THUD) Appropriations bill for Fiscal Year 2016 contains a provision that allows truckers to drive up to 82 hours per week. There is also a measure in the base bill to further delay FMCSA rulemaking regarding minimum insurance, which hasn’t been increased since 1980. As the bill moves to the full Appropriations committee for a vote, Senator Shelby will be offering an amendment to increase the size of double 28 trailers to double 33 trailers.
TAKE ACTION NOW:
We need you to call and email Senators on the committee (list below) as soon as possible and urge them to vote NO on the Shelby Amendment. The committee vote could happen as soon as tomorrow. If it passes in committee, the bill would then go to the full Senate.
The House version of the THUD bill, which passed, includes language to allow double 33s. If this passes in the Senate, the bill will go to the President with this provision in it.
TALKING POINTS:
- From 2009-2013, 432,000 Americans were injured in crashes involving large trucks.
- Nearly 4,000 people are killed in these crashes every year and the death toll has increased 4 years in a row.
- Trucking is the deadliest mode of freight transportation, accounting for 78% of fatalities.
- 96 out of 100 times it’s someone in the car, not the truck, who dies in fatal truck crashes.
Inform your Senator of these facts about the dangers of double 33s:
- Increasing 28-foot double trailers to 33-foot double trailers results in:
- A six-foot wider turning radius,
- a 33% increase in low-speed off-tracking,
- And an additional stopping distance of 22 feet.
- Double 33s performed worse than double 28s in avoidance maneuvers.
Stop the Assault on Truck Safety – Vote NO on the Shelby Amendment
Oppose all anti-truck safety provisions
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U.S Senate Committee on Appropriations
