The Department of Transportation (DOT) has enacted a series of measures to deter commercial truck drivers from multi-tasking while operating a commercial truck. Despite several mobile phone bans involving commercial drivers, distracted driving in other forms continues to be a serious problem. Most commercial drivers are law-abiding, safe drivers, but some struggling with the tediousness of the road may engage in inattentive behavior such as reading, adjusting the stereo and other activities to fight off the monotony of many consecutive hours on the road.

Distracted driving is extremely dangerous regardless of the type of motor vehicle being driven, but the stakes are much higher when the vehicle is a forty ton tractor-trailer transporting a maximum load. A tractor-trailer can travel a substantial distance in just a couple seconds. These dangerous vehicles take longer to stop and have larger blind spots than other vehicles. When commercial drivers fail to focus all of their attention on the road when operating an 80,000 pound vehicle, the resulting Georgia trucking accident can cause permanent injuries that may require a lifetime of supportive care.

Almost a half a million people per year suffer injuries in collisions caused by distracted drivers. Distracted drivers also are responsible for 16 percent of all traffic related fatalities. When these statistics are combined with the data involving trucking accident fatalities, the scope of the danger becomes evident. The fatality rate for trucking accidents is fifty percent higher than for all vehicles based on the number of miles driven. Further, more than eighty percent of those who suffer devastating injury or fatalities in trucking accidents are occupants of the passenger vehicle.

There is a myriad of laws that have been enacted in recent years to discourage distracted driving by tractor-trailer drivers. The Federal Motor Carriers Safety Administration (FMCSA) passed a universal ban on texting and driving by commercial truck drivers in 2010. The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) also banned texting and driving by drivers transporting hazardous materials the following year. Violations of these laws can result in significant civil and criminal sanctions. However, other forms of distracted driving are not impacted by anti-cell phone laws, and such distractions still cause serious Georgia trucking accidents.

Source:https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov

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