The commercial trucking industry is responsible for transporting large amounts of cargo, ranging from fruit to combustible fuel, across the roads and highways in the United States. The average weight of a truck, not counting the cargo, is 40 tons. This is a great deal more than the average weight of a sedan, which is about 2.3 tons. When a 40-ton vehicle collides with a 2.3-ton vehicle, it will almost certainly lead to catastrophic injuries and/or fatalities. When truck drivers speed, the impact of these accidents will be magnified enormously.
If you or your loved one was involved in a collision with a large semi-truck or commercial vehicle, contact the Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. truck accident lawyers at Portner & Shure to learn how we can help. Your initial consultation is entirely free and confidential.
Call us today at (410) 995-1515 or contact us online.
Why Truck Drivers Speed
A truck driver’s livelihood depends on their ability to deliver their cargo on schedule. While this seems fairly straightforward in theory, in practice, truck drivers must contend with traffic conditions and other unforeseeable events that often cause delays. This can, in turn, make a truck driver feel that he or she needs to speed in order to make up for lost time.
Additionally, the amount of time truck drivers are permitted to drive without a break is limited by federal law. Stated simply, the federal government recognized the level of danger posed by a truck driver who drives while fatigued or who falls asleep behind the wheel and enacted regulations to prevent this.
However, truck drivers are often penalized by their employers if they fail to deliver their cargo on schedule. Accordingly, truck drivers often make two logical yet hazardous choices in order to remain on schedule: they forgo taking breaks in violation of federal law, and they travel at excessive rates of speed in order to make up for lost time.
What Makes Truck Driver Speeding So Dangerous?
Vehicles that are traveling on the highway require a certain amount of distance in order to stop. This is known as “stopping distance.” Stopping distance increases at higher rates of speed; in other words, the faster a vehicle is traveling, the more time it will need to stop and the greater the distance it will travel while the driver is braking. A typical commercial truck requires about 40 times the amount of stopping distance than a passenger vehicle.
Unsurprisingly, rear end collisions by trucks are very common. Because of the sheer weight of the truck and the speed at which it was traveling prior to the collision, these accidents often lead to severe injuries and, in many cases, involve multiple vehicles.
Studies have shown that when truck drivers reduce their speed, truck collisions occur less frequently. While there have been attempts to limit the maximum speed at which trucks can travel, the trucking industry has successfully lobbied against these efforts.
What We Can Do
The attorneys at Portner & Shure know how to properly investigate and handle trucking accident cases. Commercial trucks are equipped with an on-board information recorder known as a “black box.” The black box records several things, including the average speed of the truck and the angle of the gas pedal immediately before and at the time of the collision. Our Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. truck accident attorneys know to obtain this data during the litigation process, as well as how to utilize expert witnesses to interpret the data and reconstruct the accident. Additionally, we know how to obtain and analyze other relevant data, such as delivery schedules and travel records, when building your case.
Contact Portner & Shure Today
For over two decades, we have been committed to fighting for the rights of injured victims, including the victims of major truck accidents and their families. We have a proven record of success in these cases and are ready to fight for you and your recovery. We offer contingency fees, meaning there are no costs for you until we successfully recover compensation on your behalf.
