The Kansas City Star recently did an investigative report and follow up article on the increase of fatal truck crashes over the past year, and our government’s failure to make the trucking industry safer.
Citing a recent study by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), there was a nine percent increase, or 4,671 people, killed last year in accidents involving tractor trailers. This is alarming seeing as all other traffic related crashes were down by nearly two percent.
The report, which is full of stories from truck drivers, truck crash survivors and truck crash victims’ families, highlights the need for safety reform across the trucking and transportation industries. The reporters went into detail about how NHTSA has ignored requests for years from national organizations such as RoadSafe America, which Dollar, Burns & Becker is a part of, and the National Transportation Safety Broad that would make our roadways safer.
One such safety measure available that would greatly reduce the loss of life and injuries is forward collision avoidance systems. These systems can prevent more than 70 percent of rear-end truck crashes.
Our founding partner and one of the foremost experts on truck crashes, Jeff Burns, was interviewed for the story and discussed this very issue. He was quoted saying, “The silver bullet out there right is automatic emergency braking.”
Why this hasn’t been passed yet is anyone’s guess. Both in-depth pieces are worth the read and truly shed light on our government’s failure to pass legislation that would make our highways and citizens safer.
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