Tag Archives: truck drivers

Unguarded: Death By Underride

Safety Advocacy, Truck Safety, , ,

Looking for an explanation of the truck underride problem and solutions? Look no further. Eric Hein, the father of side underride victim Riley Hein, has put together a detailed tool for learning more about underride and what can be done about it:

Unguarded: Death By Underride

Here are a few excerpts:

People die every day from side underride crashes

An “underride” is a collision between an automobile and a truck or semitrailer, and due to the height differential between the passenger vehicle and the frame of the semitrailer, the vehicle goes partially or completely under the side of the semitrailer. During a collision (see unguarded and guarded crash test here), the passenger vehicle impacts the side of the semitrailer with parts of the vehicle not designed to absorb crash forces, namely the windshield and those areas above the hood. This type of collision causes deaths and severe injuries – death by decapitation, crushing, or explosion commonly result. These catastrophic collisions would otherwise be survivable, but side underride guards on trucks and semitrailers are lacking.

https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/fc51adce82dd47d188794ef19b2e6d17

Sadly, the recognized hazard of side underride collisions with towed trailers can be traced back to at least 1935 when Robinson patented an invention for a peripheral guard on a hitch-mounted trailer.

https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/fc51adce82dd47d188794ef19b2e6d17

Industry Opposition Claims Are False

The technology is feasible and available. The trucking industry has lobbied against underride guards since 1971 and continues to inaccurately claim that side underride guards are infeasible. Contrary to industry, side underride guards ARE available – they are widely used in Europe, and have been tested and installed in the USA such as the AngelWing and Fortier in Canada.

https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/fc51adce82dd47d188794ef19b2e6d17
Riley & Eric Hein

Underride Guards Are Aerodynamic and Save Fuel Cost. Wabash engineered a combination side impact guard and skirt that passed tests for a 90-degree centerline vehicle impact at 35 miles per hour, and uses a braided cable and is 40 to 50 percent lighter than other designs. With an aerodynamic skirt installed on the underride guard, about 704 gallons ($2,153 using $3.06/gallon) of diesel fuel would be saved annually (8,448 gallons or $25,836 over the 12-year life of a semitrailer) and would completely offset the guard’s cost.

https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/fc51adce82dd47d188794ef19b2e6d17

Underride Guards Safeguard Truck Drivers. Side guards on semitrailers change the outcome of collisions to fender benders and reduce the risk of death for people in passenger vehicles, which shield truck drivers from the prospect of jail time or losing their jobs.

https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/fc51adce82dd47d188794ef19b2e6d17

Somebody has to take personal responsibility & be accountable for the danger of the trucking industry.

Safety Advocacy, Truck Safety, , , , , , , ,

“At some point, somebody has to take personal responsibility & be accountable for the danger of this industry. More truck drivers are killed on the job than any other occupation. More than 500 truck drivers are killed every year in truck crashes. . . I don’t know any other industry where that’s allowed .  .  . and people are looking the other way.

“We need to have this prosecuted at the industry or company level, because that’s where the problem lies. . . The industry drives them harder and longer than they should. The result is catastrophic death and injury all across the country

“If we could get a change in some of the laws. . . to the point where company executives are criminally responsible for the violations of their drivers’ Hours of Service, you would see a lot of things change in the industry. You might see some changes that are long overdue,”  says Jeff Burns, Truck Litigation Attorney.

Jeff Burns, National Transportation Counsel for the Truck Safety Coaltion, discusses the issue of truck crash prosecutions and the challenges facing victims of truck crashes. Prosecutors across the country are choosing not to prosecute those responsible for deadly truck crashes. Furthermore, drivers and companies are facing only minimal fines, much less than a speeding motorist, for reckless driving that results in an accident and/or death. Visit www.trucksafety.org for more information on how you can help in the fight to make our highways safer for everyone. June 14, 2011

Some previous posts which I have written on the issues of justice related to truck crashes:

Responsibility

 

A Mother’s Letter In Response To Senator Collins’ Deadly And Dangerous Provision To Increase Working Hours For Truck Drivers

Truck Safety, , ,

Here is a letter written by another mother who lost her son due to a truck crash. She does not pull any punches when asking her senator why she only responds to the needs of the trucking industry and not the families of victims.

http://trucksafety.org/read-daphne-izers-letter-in-response-to-senator-collins-deadly-and-dangerous-provision-to-increase-working-hours-fortruck-drivers/

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Truck Drivers Call In To Discuss Trucking Issues

Truck Safety, , , ,

Here is an interesting call-in show about the transportation industry & highway safety:

http://www.c-span.org/video/?321618-5/washington-journal-jeff-plungis-trucking-industry-safety

Washington DC 151

Entry Level Truck Driver Training

Truck Safety, , ,

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We have come to realize that it is way too easy for someone to obtain a CDL to drive a truck–whether or not they have been adequately trained to do so or even are proficient in the language needed to understand all of the regulations involved and to communicate while on the job.

So we are glad to see the recent action taken to call for Secretary Foxx to issue minimum entry level training requirements. Please read about it here:

http://trucksafety.org/the-new-york-times-on-issuing-a-long-overdue-rule-for-entry-level-truck-driver-training/