Deadliest, safest states for truck crashes listed. (100 people killed every week)

WASHINGTON - More than 100 people a week are killed in large-truck crashes in this country, according to safety groups that called Monday for reducing how long big-rig drivers can work without rest.

Wyoming, Arkansas and Oklahoma are the deadliest states for big truck crashes; Rhode Island, Massachusetts and Connecticut are the safest, according to The Truck Safety Coalition. It released state rankings, based on the number of fatalities per 100,000 residents during 2005, the most recent year with complete federal government figures.

Created by Congress in 1999, the federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration “has failed miserably,” said Joan Claybrook, chair of Citizens for Reliable and Safe Highways. “It is shortchanging safety for the productivity and economic interests of the trucking industry.”

In 1999, when the agency was created, 5,380 people died in crashes with big trucks. “That figure has barely budged,” Claybrook said at a news conference by the coalition of truck safety groups.

Deaths in crashes of large trucks numbered 5,212 in 2005, plus 114,000 injured. Large trucks account for 3 percent of registered vehicles but 12 percent to 13 percent of traffic fatalities.

The Federal Highway Administration's Driver Fatigue and Alertness Study underscored how fatigue exacerbates these problems that cause truck accidents. The study showed that while most people require 7.5 to 8 hours of sleep a day, the average truck driver gets 4.8 hours of sleep, hardly enough to remain alert to avoid a truck accident.

On top of this, the National Transportation Safety Board and The National Institute on Drug Abuse found in a study that of 168 fatally injured truck drivers, one or more drugs was detected in 67% of these fatally injured truck drivers and 33% of these truck drivers had detectable blood concentrations of psychoactive drugs or alcohol.

When you combine the difficulties of driving a big truck with the incidence of fatigue and substance abuse, it is amazing that we do not have more fatal truck accidents in this country.

True, but the real cause of truck wrecks are tired drivers but not from driving.

AAAAAKKKK WRONG!

Car drivers more likely to cause car-truck fatalities than truckdrivers

Cars and trucks collided in 349 fatal crashes in California last year, according to the Automobile Club of Southern California, often because car drivers didn't realize that they need to behave differently around trucks than other cars.

A new study, released recently by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety, says nationally car drivers are more likely to cause car-truck fatalities than truck drivers. An examination of California data by Steven Bloch, Ph.D., senior researcher for the Auto Club, suggests the same holds true for the state.

Although law enforcement officers are unable to determine fault in all cases, truck drivers were at fault in at least 31% of all truck-related fatal crashes in 2001. However, car drivers, pedestrians, bicyclists, motorcyclists and other causes were at fault in 69% of the crashes.

The Auto Club analysis, based on California Highway Patrol data, also shows, however, that drivers of cars and trucks are almost equally to blame in injury and property damage crashes. Statistics show that truck drivers are at fault in at least 46% of personal injury crashes and at least 52% of property damage accidents in truck-car related accidents. The AAA Foundation study did not look at injury and property damage crashes.

"Any fatal crash is one too many," said Bloch. "Car drivers need to realize that greater precautions must be taken when driving near trucks."

"Truck drivers need to be aware of speed, abrupt lane changes and to check blind spots for smaller vehicles. If both truck and car drivers drive safely and responsibly, the chances of crashes diminish."

The AAA Foundation study points out that car drivers account for nearly 98% of driver fatalities in car-truck crashes primarily because of the differences in the size of the vehicles. It notes that five driving behaviors contribute to the majority of the fatal crashes.

-- Failing to stay in the lane or running off the road
-- Failing to yield the right of way
-- Driving too fast for conditions or above the speed limit
-- Failing to obey signs and signals
-- Driver inattention

The Auto Club and AAA are recommending that drivers change the way they drive around big trucks by:
-- Not changing lanes abruptly
-- Slowing down to let trucks have the right of way
-- Driving at a safe speed
-- Staying alert to traffic signals and road conditions -- Using turn signals -- Never cutting in front of a truck
-- Avoiding driving alongside trucks whenever possible because if you can't see the truck driver's face in the side mirror, he or she can't see you
-- Avoiding tailgating

"The good news is that despite increasing numbers of cars and trucks on California roads and highways, the number of fatal car-truck crashes declined 6 percent from 1995 through 2001," said Bloch. "However injury crashes involving cars and trucks went up 4 percent during the same time period. Both car and truck drivers need to be careful and take precautions when driving near each other to save lives and reduce injuries."

The California Highway Patrol currently operates an "Operation Road Share" program where officers focus on the driving behaviors of both car and commercial vehicle drivers in an effort to increase safe driving.

The Automobile Club of Southern California says it will be sharing the AAA Foundation study with various law enforcement organizations and will publish information for members about driving safely near trucks in its Westways magazine.

The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety Study can be found at http://www.aaa-foundation.org.

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