Tag Archives: underride

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

Truck Safety, , , , ,

Let’s do some simple back-of-the-envelope math. How much would it cost to retrofit a trailer? The current estimated cost would be:

Rear guard $ 500

AngelWing Side guard $2,900

Equipment total $3,400

(TrailerGuard SafetySkirt side/rear underride protection system estimate $2,500)

Estimated years of service for a trailer = 15 years

$3,400/15 years = $227/yr

$227 yr./365 days = $0.62/day

So, for $0.62 per day, the trailer owner has the following benefits:

  1. An underride crash with fatalities or life-altering injuries can take a settlement beyond insurance policy limits. Current minimum liability is $750,000; many carriers carry $1 million — large carriers may carry more.
  2. Underride crashes can lead to bankruptcy for independent owner operators and small motor carriers.
  3. Those opposing the bill are not doing a favor to truck drivers, owner operators, and small carriers.
  4. Truck drivers, in general, don’t understand that underride protection will benefit them. It will save their livelihoods.
  5. It will keep truck drivers, who are at fault in a crash, from going to jail if an underride death can be prevented.
  6. It will decrease liability costs, which should decrease their insurance costs.
  7. It could prevent PTSD from being involved in a fatal truck crash (no matter what caused the crash).
  8. A “closed casket crash” impacts truck drivers for a lifetime.
  9. If truck owners would break down the costs of adding the protection over the life of a trailer (10-15 years), it comes out to a very small amount/month — approx. $ .62/day.
  10. Tax deduction from IRS Section 179 for safety equipment purchase.
  11. When side guards are combined with side skirts, it can provide additional fuel savings.
  12. By the way: Allowing underride crashes wastes all of the safety R&D which the auto industry has put into improving the safety features of cars (crush/crumple zone, airbags, seatbelts).

 

Underride Protection Retrofit Cost_Trailer

 

 

Senators Gillibrand & Rubio and Representatives Cohen & DeSaulnier Reintroduce Bipartisan Underride Bill

Safety Advocacy, Truck Safety, , , , , ,

March has been a momentous month for truck underride. Continuing along that line, the STOP Underrides! Bill has been re-introduced to Congress by its sponsors, Senators Gillibrand and Rubio and Representatives Cohen and DeSaulnier, on March 5.

See Senator Gillibrand’s Press Release here and Senator Rubio’s here.

To convince Congress of the importance of this bill to end Death By Underride, we will be hosting an Underride Crash Test Event in Washington, D.C., starting at 10:00 a.m. on March 26 (watch for livestreaming from Eric Flack & WUSA 9).

Consumer Reports urges Congress to pass the Stop Underrides Act

The STOP Underrides! Bill is now S.665 (referred to the Senate Commerce, Science, & Transportation Committee) and HR.1511 (referred to the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee).

DC Underride Crash Test Event, March 26, 10:00 a.m.: Be There, or Be Square!

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SAVE THE DATE: March 26, 2019, D.C. Underride Crash Test Event

D.C. Underride Crash Test AGENDA

See for yourself a crash into the side of a trailer — with & without underride protection.

See details here: Save the Date D.C. UNDERRIDE Crash Test flyer pdf

WUSA9 will be livestreaming the event on Facebook.

IIHS crash testing with & without a side guard:

IIHS crash testing weak rear guard & improved (but not required) rear guard:

  1. Sign the STOP Underrides Petition.
  2. Share the Petition link: https://www.thepetitionsite.com/104/712/045/congress-act-now-to-end-deadly-truck-underride/
  3. Call your U.S. legislators here.

#STOPunderrides Bill calls for NTSB Open Recs on underride to be resolved.

Safety Advocacy, Truck Safety, ,

Lois Durso and I attended the NTSB Announcement of their 2019 Most Wanted List. We were disappointed that there was no mention of truck underride protection — despite the fact that every almost every aspect of the STOP Underrides! Bill is included in their Open Recommendations (unresolved issues).

Getting the Ear of Legislators for Bipartisan Collaboration to #STOPUnderrides

Safety Advocacy, Truck Safety, , ,

Lois Durso and I have had some excellent conversations with Senators and staffers in both Houses this week. When we have their ear and a bit of time to make them aware of the depth of the underride issue, they really seem to get it.

I only hope that this effort and the upcoming D.C. Underride Crash Test Event on March 26 will bear fruit very soon.

Since the original introduction of the bill on December 12, 2017,  unnecessary delay  has already allowed far too many underride deaths and injuries to continue occurring  — especially when this preventable problem has been known about for decades.

School Bus Underride Protection Was Proposed by DOT in 1967

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Just for the record, apparently passenger vehicles can ride under the rear of school buses upon collision. It happens. It kills. It’s preventable.

Deadly Accident Involving School Bus in Arkansas

Deadly Accident Involving School Bus in Arkansas; The death and serious injuries were in an SUV that hit the bus, Sept. 21, 2015, OzarksFirst.com

Questions About Rear Under-Ride Bars On School Buses Follow Deadly Crash, 5News, Sept. 22, 2015

Read the reports and decide for yourself:

Posts on School Bus Underride

No matter what the reasons for past delay, let’s not let that stand in the way of ending deadly underride.

Safety Advocacy, Truck Safety, , ,

I’ve said this before but it bears repeating: While it makes me frustrated and angry when I discover new information which reveals how much and in what way the underride problem has been swept under the rug for decades, I continue to push for action to be taken collaboratively to end these senseless deaths as quickly as possible.

Based on analysis by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety of NHTSA’s truck crash fatality statistics (FARS), this graphic reflects the 600 truck/car collisions which annually occur, on average, at the sides and rear of large trucks  — leaving out front collisions: potential underride tragedies which we want to prevent with the STOP Underrides! Bill.

Some years ago, I noticed the way that the prophet Daniel, in Daniel 9, got on his knees and repented on behalf of his people. . . God’s people, for wrongdoing that he was not directly responsible for — appealing to God to act mercifully.

This week, I thought of that again and determined to stand in the stead of all those who have turned their backs to the underride problem — unknowingly or not. Perhaps we all play some part in not getting to the bottom of those terrible tragedies. Every day we delay, more people will die from truck underride. STOP Underrides!

No matter what the reasons for past delay, let’s not let that stand in the way of moving forward. That is specifically why a Committee On Underride Protection (COUP) is included in the STOP Underrides! Bill, so that a diverse group of individuals can more effectively bring about what is known to be possible.

And so I say with Daniel, “Alas, O Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps His covenant and lovingkindness for those who love Him and keep His commandments, we have sinned, committed iniquity, acted wickedly, and rebelled, even turning aside from Thy commandments and ordinances. . . Open shame belongs to us. . .

“O Lord, hear! O Lord, forgive! O Lord, listen and take action! For Thine own sake, O my God, do not delay. . .” (Daniel 9)

On behalf of all those who have not been held accountable, I repent of our country’s indifference to this preventable highway carnage. I ask the Lord to forgive our callous attitude, misplaced priorities, and neglect. May He stir up a sense of urgency that we might all take appropriate action and work together more creatively and effectively.

What are we waiting for?! Let’s get on with it! We’ve got people counting on us — whether they know it or not.

DC Underride Crash Test Event, March 26: Be There, or Be Square!

Safety Advocacy, Truck Safety, ,

Don’t turn a blind eye to preventable truck underride tragedies!

SAVE THE DATE: March 26, 2019, D.C. Underride Crash Test Event

Be there, or be square!

Save the Date D.C. UNDERRIDE Crash Test pdf

“Anyone that thinks they can outlive a crash with a truck, good luck.” Actually, I know it is possible!

Truck Safety, ,
When I checked the STOP Underrides! petition this morning, I saw that we had reached 48,000 U.S. petition signatures. I also saw this comment:
 
“Hello, big truck what do you expect. Anyone that thinks they can outlive a crash with a truck, good luck.”
 

Actually, I outlived a crash with two big trucks. My daughters did not. The difference? The truck came into their part of the car — not mine. It’s called Passenger Compartment Intrusion (PCI). And that is what Underride Protection can prevent. To save lives.

Note: some, but not all, new trailers being manufactured today have the stronger rear underride guard seen in this 2017 crash test. And most of the existing millions of trailers on the road have the weaker, ineffective rear guards.

Only a handful of trailers on U.S. roads have side guards to stop cars like this video shows is possible. That is why the STOP Underrides! Bill is so vitally important.

44,000+ STOP Underrides! Petition Signatures Posted on the Federal Register (May 2018)

I Survived Because Of Stoughton: An improved rear underride guard saved this man from an underride death

Is safety equipment (like underride guards) a legitimate “cost of doing business” for the trucking industry?

Safety Advocacy, Truck Safety, , ,

It’s a simple question:  Is safety equipment a legitimate “cost of doing business” for the trucking industry?

Here’s one opinion from Country Supply, Inc. (they service semi-trailers):

It looks like another rule/law is coming down the pipeline for the American transportation sector, specifically the trucking industry. In December of 2017 some members of Congress put forth legislation that will mandate new safety regulations for semis. This bill, introduced as S.2219 Stop the Underrides Act of 2017, would mandate front and side underride guards. It would also require the rear underride guards be brought up to higher and stronger standards. Safety of passenger vehicle occupants is the premise for this legislation.

If this law is passed, should we just consider it another cost of doing business for the trucking industry? If the past is any indication to what new regulations and laws will bear, then the answer is a definitive yes. For those who haven’t voluntarily installed these underride guards it might be wise to think about the ramifications of what the enactment of this law will bring and how this will potentially impact your future business costs. Hopefully, the mandating of any new requirements such as this will allow for ample time for compliance and implementation. Naturally, there are varied opinions about this bill. Not everyone is a proponent. Are You for or Against S.2219 Stop the Underrides Act of 2017?

Now wouldn’t that be wonderful if the entire industry embraced that attitude and we were all proponents of this life-saving technology? In fact, I’m chomping at the bit to organize a Third Underride Roundtable. My vision is to bring all the stakeholders back together again in order to collaborate and figure out how we can most effectively move ahead together to implement a mandate for comprehensive underride protection.

Society pay for Large Truck Crash Costs or Industry Pay for Safety Equipment as Cost of Doing Business?