Congress Proposes Regulations to Prevent Fatigued Truck Driving

by James Lewis

JIm is a Virginia injury attorney who handles car accidents, medical malpractice, FELA, wrongful death, etc.

12/7/2011
James Lewis
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Congress Proposes Regulations to Prevent Fatigued Truck Driving

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration data show that approximately 4,000 people get killed in accidents involving iterstate commercial trucks every year. Another 100,000 oter suffer injuries. Now, lawmakers, safety groups and families of truck crash victims are coming together to combat a major cause of those fatal and inury-causing crashes -- truck driver fatigue.

Currently, truckers are allowed to opeate their vehicles for 70 hours each week. The U.S. Department of Transportation conducted a survey among truck drivers about drowsy driving. A shocking 65 percent of commercial truckers admit to feeling sleepy while driving, and almost half say they've actually fallen asleep behind the wheel. Among the general public, 79 percent believe truckers should be limited to 10 hours of maximum consecutive driving time.

With all this in mind, lawmakers are seeking to revise the current truck driver hours of service. They hope that reducing the amount of hours drivers can spend consecutively behind the wheel will limit fatigue.

My colleagues and I definitely support this revision. As a trucking accident attorney, I've seen far too many preventable accidents occur because a driver is tired. A fatigued driver is incredibly dangerous in even the best of conditions. When that tired driver is operating a truck bigger than nearly every other vehicle on the road, catastrophe is just waiting to happen. Truckers simply need their rest before hitting the road.

CD

Category: Crashes Caused by Trucks

Labels: accident Appleton Congress Crash Death distracted driving drowsy driving fatigue federal regulations hours of service injury tractor-trailers trucks Wreck

About the Editors: Shapiro, Lewis & Appleton is a Virginia injury law firm whose attorneys focus on personal injury and accident law and have experience handling truck wreck cases. Check out our truck accident case results and our free consumer guide on what to do if you get involved in an accident with a commercial truck.

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Congress Proposes Regulations to Prevent Fatigued Truck Driving

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