Improving Truck Driving Safety the

Improving Truck Driving Safety The trucking industry in the United States has grown exponentially with the expansion of the country and its increasing needs for physical resources. Truck drivers therefore play a vital role in the functioning of the country. On the other hand, however, these drivers have also begun to cause a danger for their fellow road users. Truck driver fatigue has for example become an extensive problem not only for the drivers themselves, but also as this affects the safety of those sharing the road with them.

The problem has reached such serious proportions, that the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has legally instituted a regulation in 2003 to limit the hours that truckers spend on the road (Munley, Munley & Cartwright, 2009). The problem however remains that, both personal, professional and political factors make it difficult for truck drivers to maintain a sensible cycle of work and sleep hours.

This study will investigate the reasons why truck drivers apparently knowingly ignore the regulations that have been put in place for their safety as well as the safety of others. Indeed, although the 2003 regulation has reduced accidents, the U.S. National Transport Safety Board still cite driver fatigue as the main factor that is to blame for as many as 20-40% of accidents involving trucks (Munley, Munley & Cartwright, 2009). Truck drivers are subject to a variety of factors in transporting their cargo across the United States.

Personal and professional factors may concomitantly play a role in a driver's urge to push the boundaries of acceptable work hours. Personal and professional revenue for example play a significant role. Companies can profit from keeping their drivers on the road longer, for example. In order to accomplish this, drivers are offered bonuses for longer road hours with shorter breaks. On a more practical level, truckers may also wish to avoid traffic problems during particular times of the day, and therefore continue driving despite fatigue.

On a personal level, truck drivers may be anxious to reach their homes for holidays or weekends. It can also be that the driver is experiencing problems at their homes or in their personal lives. The preoccupation with such problems could contribute to a lack of sleep and also a lack of concentration, which can compound to make the problem even worse. In order to provide proof for the above-mentioned problem area, various research reports will be investigated.

Munley, Munley & Cartwright (2009), for example are a company of attorneys specializing in the field of truck accidents and their causes. They resolve such matters on a regular basis, and are therefore experts in their field, providing reliable data by means of which the issue can be investigated. In addition to document research, interviews can also be conducted with truck drivers, their companies, and even with legal advisers and legislators.

A limitation here could be a tendency to not be entirely truthful about the problem as it relates to the interviewee him- or herself, due to the sensitivity of the subject. It is projected that many professionals would be unwilling to admit to wrongdoing, regardless of how diplomatically the questions are put. Proving the problem in this way might therefore be somewhat challenging. Nevertheless, a great number of studies are available on the issue, and these can be used to substantiate the points made by the research.

Court cases are also a valuable source of information, research and data. Max Baker (2006) for example addresses two court cases in which driver fatigue were said to play a significant role in fatal truck accidents. The driver, Jimmy D. Jordan, was killed in March 2004 in an accident on interstate 30. His family was compensated with a $2.25 million out of court settlement. A jury verdict in another case returned a $2 million payout by the Fort Worth Carrier Corporation for a 2001 Missouri crash, in which the driver was killed and his wife injured.

In addition to the maintenance record of the trucks themselves, questions were raised about the drivers, their possible sleep deprivation, and the role that these played in the respective Accidents (Baker, 2006). In both cases, it was found that the companies were responsible both for truck maintenance and driver safety. Working hours are also company responsibility, and they are to enforce these via bonuses rather than longer hours. Not having upheld such responsibility has made them liable and hence the payouts in both cases.

Concomitantly with a lack of sleep, company responsibilities regarding the above-mentioned truck maintenance also appear to not always be up to standard, if the facts of the cases are investigated. According to Baker's report, drivers for the company have taken responsibility by reporting truck problems, which were simply ignored by their companies. Further investigation found the truck unroadworthy to an extent where this was at least partly responsible for the crash.

In addition, factors beyond the truck drivers' control, such as bad weather and road conditions, can also contribute to accidents. When these are compounded with the problems associated with lack of sleep, crashes are generally more than likely. Baker (2006) substantiates the above-mentioned 2003 regulation, according to which no driver is allowed more than 11 cumulative hours on the roads, which should be preceded by at least 10 hours of rest.

This regulation is however frequently ignored not only by truck drivers themselves, but also by companies who tend to focus on profit rather than employee well-being. Baker also notes that driver fatigue is on of the major problems in road safety, and should therefore be addressed accordingly. A study conducted by Sabagh-Ehrlich, Friedman & Richter (2005) notes that, although only 6% of drivers on American roads at the time of writing were trucks, they account for as much as 20% of all accidents.

The study furthermore focuses specifically on the role that driver fatigue plays in the exacerbation of this problem. According to the study, reports by the California Highway Patrol indicate that fatigue is a cause in as much as 67% of crashes. This appears to be a worldwide phenomenon, with the UK, Finland and Israel also experiencing similar problems: trucks represent a discordant proportion of the vehicle population and the amount of accidents on the roads of nearly all industrial countries.

In addition to a lack of sleep and long work hours, the report cites several other factors that can result in driver fatigue for long haul truck drivers. These include poor working conditions, chronic illness and sleep disorders. This directly affects not only their safety, but also their health, as these drivers show higher rates of absenteeism as a result of illness. Indirectly, as seen above, driver fatigue affects all other road users. The extent of the problem clearly calls for remedies that target the specific problem areas.