Regulations that promote safe commercial truck operations concern all motorists in Texas. An administrator from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration addressed multiple safety topics during an appearance at a conference organized by the American Trucking Association. He commented on advanced safety technology, teen truckers and proposed changes to hours-of-service regulations.
Safety equipment could reduce truck accident fatalities
Trucking accidents can be particularly devastating to other motorists sharing the Texas roads. Because of the size, weight and volume of 18-wheeler trucks, these vehicles are more likely to cause fatalities in accidents. Of the 4,102 people killed in truck crashes in 2017, 82% of the victims were pedestrians, cyclists or occupants of smaller passenger vehicles. Some types of truck collisions are even more likely to be fatal. For example, crashes where people are crushed in the exposed area on the truck's side between the front and rear wheels can be particularly catastrophic.
3 hospitalized after charter bus crashes into guardrail in Rosenberg
Via: abc 13 EYEWITNESS News (https://abc13.com/watch-live-charter-bus-involved-in-major-crash-in-rosenberg-/5403309/)
New rules could ease trucker regulations
Commercial drivers in Texas and throughout the country could soon see a change to current hours-of-service rules. As they are written today, drivers can remain on duty for no longer than 14 hours at a time. During this on-duty period, they can spend up to 11 hours on the road. Once that period is over, a driver must wait at least 10 hours before working again.
Hours of service rules linked to rising truck accident deaths
Motor vehicle accident fatalities in Texas and around the country fell by 2% in 2017, but the number of road users killed in crashes involving commercial vehicles rose by a worrying 9% to 4,761. That is the highest truck accident death toll in 29 years, and 72% of those killed were traveling in passenger vehicles that were struck by tractor-trailers. The sophisticated safety systems fitted to modern commercial vehicles do not seem to be enough to prevent accident deaths from rising even higher, and some road safety advocacy groups say federal hours-of-service rules could be the reason why.
Speeding to be the focus of annual safe driver week event
Law enforcement officials in Texas and other states routinely monitor roads for bad driving behaviors. Such efforts are stepped up during annual Operation Safe Driver Week events. The focus for the 2019 event will be speeding, which was a contributing factor in more than 90% of all traffic accidents in 2015 according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
