Sharing the road with massive commercial trucks can be downright frightening. These vehicles have massive blind spots, make wide turns and take longer to stop than other vehicles. Because of their size and weight, they can utterly destroy smaller passenger vehicles in the event of a collision.
No matter how carefully you drive, there’s no way to avoid all commercial trucks on the road. Sometimes, you will have to drive in close proximity to this huge vehicles. That means you could end up in a crash with a commercial vehicle, through no fault of your own.
Commercial truck drivers make mistakes sometimes
Some of the people who operate these vehicles are aggressive drivers, while others make poor decisions behind the wheel. Some choose to engage in distractions, such as using a smartphone, texting or even eating while driving. Others might have a few drinks before heading to work or keep driving when they are too tired to drive safely. After all, they are only human, just like everyone else on the road.
Sadly, the people in smaller vehicles often end up paying the price for the mistakes of truck drivers. In the event of a fatal crash, approximately 97% of the time, the fatalities will be the people in the smaller passenger vehicle.
Exhaustion makes everyone a worse driver
No matter what kind of vehicle you drive, feeling tired, fatigued or exhausted could impact your ability to drive safely. It could result in longer reaction times, poor decision-making or an inability to understand abrupt changes, such as when a vehicle slams on its brakes or an animal dashes into the road. Anyone who drives exhausted increases the risk of crashes or collisions. With commercial drivers, that means everyone else on the road is at risk.
In order to reduce that risk, there are laws, called Hours of Service, that limit how long a trucker can drive. Unfortunately, there is often motivation for truckers to violate these laws by driving for longer than they legally should. Delays due to weather or traffic could cost them a client or contract. In some cases, employers offer financial bonuses for on-time delivery. Whatever the reason, driving fatigued is a mistake.
Commercial vehicle crashes can change your life
The consequences of a commercial vehicle collision can impact your life for years to come. It could result in permanent injury or the death of someone in your vehicle. Injuries could keep you from working in the near future or even for the rest of your life.
Those who drive for a living need to ensure that they are safe behind the wheel. Failing to do so puts everyone on the road in a dangerous position.