In 2024, nearly 3,700 collisions on Kansas roads involved 18 wheeler, semi trucks or other large commercial trucks. Of these collisions, 55 were fatal and over 1,000 resulted in some type of injury. The rest resulted in damage to the vehicles only (as per KSDOT statistics).
According to the FMCSA, nearly 33% of all heavy truck crashes involved at least one truck-driver related factor. A report by US DOT states that about a fourth of all trucks on American roadways would fail a safety inspection if they were to be tested right now.
En pocas palabras, las empresas de transporte y los conductores de camiones desempeñan un papel en las colisiones de vehículos pesados que a menudo resultan en lesiones graves o la muerte. Los abogados de lesiones de DeVaughn James han manejado cientos de estas colisiones a lo largo de los años. Basándonos en nuestra experiencia, aquí están algunos de los principales factores que pueden provocar colisiones devastadoras de camiones:
Negligencia del conductor de camión que puede causar colisiones mortales
Speeding: When someone is driving a vehicle that weighs 40 tons and measures 50-70 ft long, mere seconds can make a difference to the forward distance covered by that vehicle. Add speed to the mix and you now have an extremely heavy vehicle that will be more difficult, and take more time, to control and maneuver.
Tener un vehículo más pequeño a pocos metros de este gran camión facilita la comprensión de cómo el lapso de tan solo unos segundos puede resultar en la muerte o lesiones graves de otros conductores y pasajeros en la carretera.
It’s no wonder that speeding is implicated in over one fifth of all heavy vehicle fatality collisions.
Distractions: Inattentiveness, whether it’s attributed to a GPS system or cell phone usage while driving, is simply not an option when you can cover the distance two football fields in a matter of 10 seconds. Yet, truck drivers are often caught with their eyes away from the road, checking their phone screens, eating, or simply daydreaming. Unfortunately, these distractions end up causing 5.3% of all fatal heavy vehicle collisions.
Impairments: Heavy trucks need nearly 170 ft to come to a complete halt, even when they are driving at a speed of 40 MPH. At 65 MPH, the distance needed to stop increases to 525 ft. These trucks are also about 14 ft high, giving them a higher center of gravity, which requires wider turns. Now imagine a truck driver performing all these risky maneuvers in an impaired state. About 4.7% of all fatal truck collisions are attributed to impairment!
Alcohol or narcotics may not always be the problem. This brings up the topic of deliberate acts of trucking companies that make American roads dangerous for passenger vehicles.
Negligencia por parte de las empresas de transporte que provoca accidentes
- Despite stringent laws, trucking companies often overwork truck drivers or set their schedules in a way that causes sleep deprivation.
- Another act of blatant negligence is hiring inadequately trained drivers in a bid to save money.
- Finally, trucking companies are responsible for vehicle maintenance and loading. These are tasks that they frequently outsource. It goes without saying that with profit reigning supreme on the agenda of all parties involved, negligence can be both frequent and serious.
Unfortunately, the occupants of passenger vehicles, motorcyclists, and pedestrians, must bear the brunt of this negligence. If you have been injured in a semi truck accident, the experienced truck accident attorneys at DeVaughn James can help you claim fair compensation.
