Inspections Find Speeding Truckers in Oversized Rigs

Authored by: Gray Ritter Graham posted in Truck Accidents on Monday, March 21, 2016.

truck blur.jpgIf the results of an event incorporating roadside inspections and heightened law enforcement are a true indication, more truckers are speeding - in bigger and heavier rigs.

The Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance held its 2015 Operation Safe Driver Week in October 2015 and released its findings earlier this year. The CVSA is a non-profit group of various private concerns and federal, state and local agencies throughout North America who share the goal of making commercial vehicles safer. It has held Operation Safe Driver week every year since 2007 in an attempt to decrease the number of fatal trucking accidents.

Trained individuals conducted roadside safety inspections of some 19,500 big rigs and their drivers during the event. Almost 3,000 police officers also pulled over truckers for unsafe driving.

Truckers Exceeding the Speed Limit on the Rise

Law enforcement issued nearly 8,000 citations and warnings to truckers. The top five reasons were for:

  • The size and weight of their tractor-trailers
  • Speeding
  • Failure to use a seatbelt
  • Failure to obey a traffic control device
  • Using a handheld cellphone while driving

The number of citations given to truckers who violated the speed limit increased from 5.8 percent in 2014 Operation Safe Driver Week to 9.3 percent in the 2015 event. And the size and weight of the trucks did not make the top five citations handed out in 2014.

Inspections Find Violations and Save Potential Lives Lost in Truck Crashes

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration provides funding to states to conduct their own roadside inspections. It analyzed the results of this program and recently announced that, between 2001 and 2012, the inspections saved more than 7,000 lives from potential deadly truck crashes.

The leading cause of catastrophic trucking accidents is driver error. Truckers are responsible for safely operating rigs that weigh several tons. When they speed or if their vehicles exceed legal limits, the chances for crashes increase significantly and innocent drivers can be killed or seriously injured.

Unfortunately, roadside inspections and police officers can't catch all dangerous truckers to prevent these tragedies from occurring.

If you were critically hurt or had a loved one die in an accident involving a commercial truck, you do have options for seeking justice from those responsible. Consult an attorney who represents truck accident victims to learn more.

The choice of a lawyer is an important decision that should not be based solely on advertising.

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