Although most truck drivers understand the risks they face on the highway, there are many truck drivers who are not operating their rig in a manner that is safe to the public.
Most truck accidents that involve driver error include one or more of the following factors:
Distracted driving has become an absolute epidemic on American roads. Texting, Tweeting, Facebook, Reading, you name it, you can do it from your phone. Distracted driving kills thousands of Americans every year. According to stoptextsstopwrecks.com in 2013, 3,154 people were killed and an estimated additional 424,000 were injured in motor vehicle crashes involving distracted drivers. Although this represents a 6.7 percent decrease from 2012, there were 424,000 people injured in 2013, which is an increase from the 421,000 people who were injured in 2012.
Distracted driving affects Truck drivers as well. They spend more time on the road than we do. These operators, like all other drivers on the road, have a responsibility to stay focused on the road. You would think that driving a large vehicle with many blind-spots would force truck drivers to stay focused on the road. However, just like anything that becomes a habit, it is easy to go on auto-pilot and allow distractions to take our minds off of the task at-hand.
But the truth remains that operating a commercial vehicle requires a driver’s full attention, even if the person has years of experience driving these large, powerful vehicles. Any attempted multitasking while driving can prove dangerous for both truck drivers and other motorists on the road. Should a truck driver cause an accident because of these distractions, he or she should be held accountable for the injuries he caused.
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