Truck Safety

Tractor-trailers and large trucks may weigh up to 80,000 pounds and exceed 90 feet in length, and they must perform certain maneuvers that drivers of automobiles and small trucks do not. Large trucks require more time to both gain speed and to slow down. They also require more room when making turns and swing wide at intersections. When drivers travel Missouri and Illinois highways with large trucks, a new set of dangers are present.

When encountering large trucks, such as tractor trailers, semi trucks, or 18 wheelers, keep the following safety guidelines in mind:

Truck brakes create heat when a truck is traveling downhill, requiring additional stopping distance for the truck. Any sudden braking required by the driver may result in a jackknife.
Do not enter a roadway in front of a large vehicle without leaving ample distance. Avoid changing lanes in front of a large truck if you are turning off the roadway.
It takes longer to pass a tractor trailer. After you pass, make sure you can see the cab of the truck in your rearview mirror before reentering the lane.
Watch for any sway or possible hazards such as crosswinds or slippery curves when traveling near an 18 wheeler.
Truckers have blind spots or NO-ZONES into which a car can disappear from view– up to 20 feet in front of the cab and on either side of the tractor trailer.
When you are near semi truck weigh stations, avoid driving in the right lane so slow-moving trucks can easily merge back onto the roadway.

Remember that if you cannot see the truck driver in his side-view mirror, he can’t see you either. Be careful if you are planning to pass a tractor trailer, semi truck, or 18 wheeler, or move to another lane.

Large Truck Statistics

In 2008, 380,000 large trucks were involved in traffic crashes in the United States with 4,066 resulting in fatalities.
An additional 90,000 were injured in those crashes.
Nationally, one out of nine traffic fatalities in 2008 resulted from a collision involving a large truck.
Missouri large truck fatalities for 2008 was 117 while Illinois registered 136 fatal truck accidents
Missouri truck accident fatalities accounted for 9.3% of all MO accidents, with 9.5% in Illinois.

Sources:

Missouri Driver’s Guide

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration