The thing you may not be taking into consideration is that the truckers eyes are at least 10 feet above the road. He doesn't look at the vehicle in front of him to determine what his next move should be, he's looking at least half a mile in front of his truck.
He is watching what the car that is 20 vehicles in front of him is doing and all the time keeping an eye out for every car in between #20 and #1, the two or three cars beside him and the ones who are coming up behind him that will be beside him in a mile or so.
Yes, they do try to maintain a 360 degree on going situation awareness. The reason for this is because if someone in front of him does something he may have to move the truck to the left or the right and he doesn't want to be crushing some idiot who thinks it is safe to drive beside a 40 ton semi.
It is NOT safe to drive beside a 40 ton semi. Not on the right nor on the left. Pass those trucks, do not linger beside them. If one of the vehicles in front of him has a mechanical failure and drops something on the road that cause a tire to blow you could end up with a 50 pound piece of rubber knocking your entire windshield into your car.
If he decides he has to change lanes because somebody slammed on their brakes and the car directly in front of him is full of youngsters or babies and you aren't immediately easily seen then you are going to be crushed.
For the truck driver, driving at the same speed as the surrounding cars is the easiest way to drive because he doesn't have cars constantly passing him, nor do people tend to drive beside trucks for more than a mile or two. Why? Because of the noise. They might miss a phone call or a favorite song on the radio.
Also people don't tend to tailgate too close at 70 or 75 miles an hour. Maybe it occurs that if a retread comes loose they won't have time to dodge it before their grill gets stuffed back into the radiator.
I don't worry about the truckers. I worry about what the car driver is going to do in front of him that is going to force the trucker into doing something that is unsafe.
I've always liked to travel behind big rigs (with their rearview mirrors in sight) because I figure the truck is providing a great safety cushion for me. If something or someone has to get hit, I'd rather the truck in front of me do the heavy lifting! If he slams on the brakes, I'll have plenty of reaction time and can stop faster, anyway.
The other side benefit is that I'm probably saving a few pennies on gasoline due to the "drafting" effect. Trucks create a substantial slipstream, so why not benefit since it hurts nobody. I find that respecting their size is the easiest way to get along with professional truckers.
~ Blue Jays ~