Tag Archives: side guards

Urgent Call to Action on Truck Safety (June 16)

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UPDATE, June 18, 2020: Thank you to those who took action. The Garcia Amendment passed. The Cohen Amendment did not pass.

When a vehicle goes under a big truck, it’s called an underride crash.  This type of crash is extremely dangerous and completely preventable.  Installing better guards on big trucks would prevent this type of crash.  There is a bill being considered now under the INVEST in America Act which would require these life saving guards.  

The Infrastructure Bill includes an Underride Section.

Become part of the solution by sending an email TODAY to U.S. Representatives on the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee (T&I). They will be considering the INVEST in America Act on Wednesday, June 17, at 10:00 a.m. in a live hearing.

Use this website link to search for your U.S. Representative, or ones from your state who are on the T&I Committee. Send these two simple messages in your own words — asking them to make trucking safer by:

  • Supporting the Cohen Amendment 089 to strengthen the Underride legislation in the INVEST in America Act by directing NHTSA to do a pilot program in order to prove that underride protection is effective and technically feasible.
  • Supporting the Garcia Amendment 062 which will raise the Minimum Insurance Liability for truck companies from $750,000 – an amount set in 1980 – to $2 million in a simple adjustment for inflation. This needed change has been neglected for decades and will help not only truck crash victims but also truck drivers, who are often victims of truck crashes. It creates a financial incentive to enforce safety.
  • Late-breaking addition: Ask them to OPPOSE the Perry Amendment 115, which strikes Automatic Emergency Braking from the Bill. This amendment appears to be getting in the way of advancing crash avoidance technology to prevent or reduce the severity of crashes. Why would they want to do that?

Watch this short video which vividly tells the story of Mike, a truck crash victim who was impacted by the woefully-low insurance requirement:

You can also tag them on a Tweet.

Thank you for taking action. Share this message with your friends so we can make a significant impact at a crucial time.

Truck Safety Call to Action

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Finally, we’re getting someplace in our efforts to make trucking safer. Legislation is being considered which looks promising to address the issues from our AnnaLeah & Mary Stand Up For Truck Safety Petition in 2014.

You can become part of the solution by making a quick phone call or send an email to U.S. Representatives on the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee (T&I). They will be considering the INVEST in America Act on Wednesday, June 17, at 10:00 a.m. in a live hearing.

Use this website link to search for your U.S. Representative, or ones from your state who are on the T&I Committee. Send these two simple messages in your own words — asking them to make trucking safer by:

  • Supporting the Cohen Amendment 089 to strengthen the Underride legislation in the INVEST in America Act by directing NHTSA to do a pilot program in order to prove that underride protection is effective and technically feasible.
  • Supporting the Garcia Amendment 062 which will raise the Minimum Insurance Liability for truck companies from $750,000 – an amount set in 1980 – to $2 million in a simple adjustment for inflation. This needed change has been neglected for decades and will help not only truck crash victims but also truck drivers, who are often victims of truck crashes. It creates a financial incentive to enforce safety.

Watch this short video which vividly tells the story of Mike, a truck crash victim who was impacted by the woefully-low insurance requirement:

Thank you for taking action. Share this message with your friends so we can make a significant impact at a crucial time.

House T&I Committee’s INVEST in America Act Includes Underride Legislation

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The House T&I Committee published their draft of the renewal of the FAST Act. Section 4405 addresses Truck Underride: Underride Section of FAST Act 2020 – INVEST in America

You can compare it to the STOP Underrides Bill: Text – H.R.1511 – 116th Congress (2019-2020)_ Stop Underrides Act _ Congress.gov _ Library of Congress

Update (September 13): Comparison Chart of Underride Provisions in Various Bills

And here are the GAO Underride Recommendations: GAO Truck Underride Recommendations

Will Congress & NHTSA move forward with bold and decisive action to end underride?

All this talk of side skirts for fuel savings & not one word about side guards for life saving!

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A recent article from Transport Topics caught my eye. It’s all about this & that concerning side skirts on trailers (for fuel savings). Lots for a trailer buyer to consider when making a decision.

Installing the complete system takes 2.5 man-hours, he said.

Wikipedia has to say this about cost: As of 2009, a set of trailer skirts cost between C$1500 and C$3000 (US$1300 to $2700). Standard trailer skirts have an estimated payback period of ten to eighteen months, while “advanced” skirts (those that improve fuel efficiency by over 7%) are estimated to pay for themselves in seven to fourteen months.

Seriously?! An AngelWing side guard can be installed in close to that amount of time. And if side guards were socially acceptable and widely embraced so that they readily available to purchase (you know how supply and demand works, right?), the price could quite likely be comparable. Plus side guards may enhance fuel savings when used with side skirts.

So why the fuss from the industry about the cost of LIFE-SAVING side guards!?

Read the whole article for yourself and tell me why there is such resistance to installing comprehensive and effective underride protection and outright opposition toward a mandate which would require it.

What have we been waiting for since March 19, 1969? A law to prevent people from dying under the side of trucks.

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  1. Fifty-one years ago, on March 19, 1969, (I learned in 2016) the US DOT was recorded as saying that they intended “after technical studies have been completed, to extend the requirement for underride protection to the sides of large vehicles.”
  2. They have not done so (even though it has been proven possible & technical studies have been done) — just like they have not mandated rear guards to be stronger or front guards to be installed.
  3. Inaction at the cost of tens of thousands of lives.
  4. On March 19, 1969, I was thirteen years old. Little did I know about what they had said or that in 8 years I would get married on March 19, 1977 (43 years ago today), that in the ensuing years I would bear nine children, teach them at home, raise most of them to adulthood, and bury two of them due to preventable Death By Underride.
Participate in the Side Guard Task Force Meeting via Zoom, April 17

Wabash Engineer Left a Valuable Legacy: A Side Underride Guard Patent

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In November 2017, Lois Durso and I were privileged to meet the inventor of this design –Wabash engineer, Rod Ehrlich — along with his son Mark Ehrlich, who have been a vital part of this important research. Rod died in October 2018, after a long career of useful contributions to the trailer industry — including more than 60 patents, and most recently a side underride guard patent.

Wabash National continues their side underride protection R&D, as evidenced by a side underride guard patent filed on April 17, 2018, and issued on February 4, 2020. The prototype was introduced in a September 2017 commercial vehicle show in Atlanta.

“A side underride system configured to be coupled to a trailer may comprise a first skirt wall coupled to the trailer, positioned below a first side wall of the trailer, and extending along a first length of the trailer between a skirt wall front end and a skirt wall rear end and a cable system including a first cable coupled to the trailer, positioned below the first side wall, and extending along a second length of the trailer between a cable system front end and a cable system rear end, the skirt wall rear end being positioned forward of the cable system rear end.” https://patents.justia.com/patent/10549797

Wabash 2020 SUG patent (1)

In fact, we were able to see a successful crash test of his design. As evidenced by Rod’s work, along with that of many other engineers, this country has the talent to bring about effective solutions to deadly underride. Unfortunately, the lack of a mandate is holding the trucking industry back from moving forward with tangible action to once and for all get it on the road.

Let’s grab the baton from Rod’s legacy. Surely we can put our heads together and reach the finish line in the long-standing pursuit of that elusive goal: underride protection on the sides of all large trucks so that we might save lives and prevent horrific injuries.

Lois Durso-Hawkins, Atlanta TMC Conference, March 2018
Wabash side impact guard prototype, March 2018, Atlanta TMC Conference

Save the Date (April 17): Side Guard Task Force Meeting

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The Purpose of this meeting will be to collaboratively discuss Strategies to Solve the Side Underride Problem

UPDATE: Due to the coronavirus pandemic, we are changing the format of this to a Zoom meeting. Let us know if you would like to join us!

1. Opening Remarks

2. Setting the Stage for our Consensus Task: Systems Thinking Group Exercise to identify systemic factors impacting resolution of the underride problem, Kristin Hassmiller Lich & Becky Naumann, UNC SPH

3. Collaborative Discussion of Specifications for Side Guards, Andy Young, Facilitator

4. Lunch

5. Collaborative Discussion of a Plan for Implementation of Industry-wide Installation of Side Guard Solutions, Andy Young, Facilitator

6. Wrapping up: Next Steps in This Process

Side Guard Task Force SAVE THE DATE 2

OOIDA supports stronger rear guards but not adding side guards. What more do they need to know?

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WUSA9 interviewed OOIDA (Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association) about the STOP Underrides Bill. Watch the latest segment of their truck underride investigative series in which OOIDA publicly committed themselves to supporting strengthening rear underride guard standards.

That’s great news. They’ve apparently seen the value of making truck crashes more survivable when cars rear-end trucks. However, it is puzzling to hear them, at the same time, oppose side guard technology which can also prevent people from dying under trucks — in this case, at the sides.

OOIDA said all the research – and crash tests like the one staged last year, just blocks from Capitol Hill, to draw attention to the fight for new underride safety requirements – doesn’t convince their organization side guards will be worth the investment.

“My last semi-trailer was $42,000 just with that trailer,” Pugh said. “So now we’re looking at upping the price another $2,000 to $3,000. That’s hard for a little guy to eat. That’s hard for a big guy to eat. There’s not that much profit in this business and if you want me to buy this technology and buy into this technology, you’re going to need to show me it works.” Lewie Pugh, executive vice president of the Owner-Operated Independent Truck Driver Association or OOIDA, which represents more than 160,000 members nationwide.

Pugh wants more government (read that taxpayer) funded side guard research:

Pugh says that means real-world testing. Prototypes, paid for by the government, studied by a federal agency like the Department of Transportation for effectiveness.

Perhaps he’s unaware of the side guard study conducted by Texas A&M on a contract from NHTSA (with taxpayer money) published in April 2018.

Is he aware of the untold number of hours put in by researchers and engineers to study and solve the underride problem over the past five decades? Here it is in a nutshell: History of Underride Research & Reports: 1896 to 2019

Maybe he doesn’t realize that the AngelWing side guard — successfully tested by the IIHS at 35 and 40 mph and by its inventor at 47.2 mph — has been installed on multiple trucks for several years and traveled thousands of miles without operational issues.

What exactly would convince him that underride protection on the sides of large trucks — promised by DOT on March 19, 1969 — can truly mean the difference between life and death? Or that they are not “too costly”?

Back-of-the-Envelope Math for Underride Protection Retrofit Cost/Trailer Equation

There are major developments in the fight to require lifesaving equipment on big rigs driving next to you on the road. Safety advocates say it could help prevent devastating crashes known as underride accidents.

One of the nation’s largest trucking groups now says it is open to some of the proposed requirements. But the question remains if the industry’s concessions will go far enough for the families of accident victims.

Read more of the story here: https://bit.ly/3awIaxU #Underrides#BigRigs#TruckUnderrides#TruckCrash#TruckDrivers

Super Single Tires Could Offset Cost of Side Guards: Save Weight/Cost/Lives!

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Super single tires (in place of the more common dual tire set-up) on semi-trailers could actually save weight, cost, and — when combined with side guards — lives! Sounds like a Win/Win scenario to me! But don’t take my word for it, read about the potential benefits in this truck driver blogpost:

Essentially, instead of having eighteen tires to support the trailer and truck, only ten will be needed because of the improved design of the tire itself. The super single truck tires can withstand the weight of the trailer and vehicle over the same time period as their dual counterparts. A study performed by the Oak Ridge National Laboratory showed that trucks could save an average of almost 3% on gas or diesel fuel. While 3% may not sound like much, over 125,000 miles and averaging five miles per gallon that results in a savings of 728 gallons per year.

In addition, the new tires actually offer more stability with a wider truck frame. However, the most interesting advantages are that these tires can hold up for about 200,000 miles as opposed to the standard 160,000 miles for the conventional tires. This means that money is saved on replacement as well since the fewer number of super singles which actually last 40,000 miles longer.

However, the main advantage that super singles offer is that they are stronger, yet lighter in weight than their standard counterparts by roughly 1,000 pounds in total. While this weight savings may translate to better fuel mileage, trucking companies see this as being able to add 1,000 more pounds to the cargo. This means that more can be hauled on a single trip which can earn the company even more money than before.

Read more here: http://truck-driver-blog.blogspot.com/2014/10/advantages-of-super-single-truck-tires.html?m=1

Possible Drawback (as mentioned in the video below) is what could happen when there is a tire blow-out.

Additional Citations To Check Out:

Motor carriers consider many factors — and come to different conclusions — as they evaluate wide-base tires versus standard duals for their tractors and trailers Fleets Weigh Benefits, Drawbacks of Wide-Base Tires Versus Duals Transport Topics, April 13, 2020

www.eurekalert.org › pub_releases › drnl-stf080117
Story tips from the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National …Aug 1, 2017 – Credit: Oak Ridge National Laboratory/Dept. of Energy … derived from old rubber tires, an Oak Ridge National Laboratory-led research team … Scientists found that single gallium cations are the key to increasing production of …Missing: super ‎| Must include: super

www.greencarcongress.com › 2006/06 › single_widebase
ORNL: Single Wide-Base Truck Tires Improve Fuel Economy …Jun 30, 2006 – Replacing the standard two thinner tires per wheel with a single wide-base tire improves the fuel … Interstate tests by ORNL’s National Transportation Research Center show… … We drive a new truck with super singles.books.google.com › books

Review of the 21st Century Truck Partnership, Second ReportNational Research Council, ‎Division on Engineering and Physical Sciences, ‎Board on Energy and Environmental Systems – 2012 – ‎Technology & EngineeringNational Research Council, Division on Engineering and Physical Sciences, Board on Energy and … ORNL. 2009. Effect of Wide-Based Single Tire on Class-8 Combination Fuel Efficiency. … High Efficiency Clean Combustion for Super Truck.

www.greencarcongress.com › 2006/10 › ornl_launches_n
ORNL Launches Nationwide Heavy-Duty Truck Efficiency Test …Oct 23, 2006 – Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) has launched a nationwide test of … Heavy-Duty Truck Efficiency Test; Single Wide Tires a Prime Focus … Earlier interstate tests by ORNL’s National Transportation Research Center … I have seen a few of these trucks pass me, recently, with the super single wheels.

SafetySkirt Inventor Developing Rear Reinforcement Attachment to Strengthen Rear Underride Guards on Trucks

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Eight major trailer manufacturers have designed stronger rear underride guards to withstand a crash test at 35 mph all the way across the back of the trailer — earning them the TOUGHGuard Award from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). This is significant because their previous designs — though meeting the current federal standard for rear guards — have been proven too weak and ineffective by IIHS.

There are about 300,000 new trailers sold every year. Some manufacturers are selling the stronger guard as Standard on all new trailers. Others are selling it as an Option, meaning that trailers may still be sold with guards known to be too weak to stop cars and save lives.

In addition, if we don’t retrofit the existing 11 million+ trailers with stronger guards — which will meet the TOUGHGuard criteria (plus side and rear underride protection) — it will be years before the entire fleet will be safer to drive around.

Fortunately, some of the trailer manufacturers have a retrofit kit for the rear guards, so that a trucking company could theoretically purchase kits to make their trucks safer. However, without a mandate to do so, I don’t imagine that will happen too quickly.

But I am encouraged by the work of Aaron Kiefer, a North Carolina crash reconstructionist who has seen so many underride tragedies that he decided to design some solutions on his own — primarily out of his own pocket and on his own time, with the support of his family who share their husband and dad with his life-saving project.

Just this weekend, Aaron installed the latest version of his Rear Reinforcement Attachment to a 53 foot trailer. Over the last five years, Aaron has been developing a design for two aluminum triangles, which are fastened to both sides of the trailer and then attached to both ends of the existing rear underride guard.

The latest version installed on September 15, 2019.

This reinforces the strength of the rear guard — improving its capability to stop a car and prevent underride. But it, also, serves as the point of attachment for Aaron’s side guard invention, the SafetySkirt — polyester webbing which can be combined with a side skirt to both save fuel and save lives.

A previous version of the Rear Reinforcement Attachment and SafetySkirt system.

You can see the SafetySkirt being tested at the D.C. Underride Crash Test Event on March 26, 2019:

We are looking forward to the day when Aaron’s SafetySkirt System can be tested at IIHS to prove its usefulness as an affordable, lightweight solution, which could theoretically be available as an option to retrofit any truck on the road with effective side and rear underride protection.

Aaron, like Perry Ponder who invented the AngelWing side guard, and countless other engineers, who should be given a green light to solve the underride problem, are amazing members of my Underride Hero Hall of Fame — along with my husband Jerry who has contributed a wealth of ideas in this underride advocacy journey.