Escalon, CA (October 6, 2016) – A man was killed and five other people were injured in a multi-vehicle crash on Highway 120 on Monday, October 3, 2016. The crash occurred at about 5:05 p.m. during regular commuting hours on the eastbound Highway 120 at Main Street. Two men and three women suffered injuries of various levels.
A fiery six-vehicle crash involving a semi-truck before 6 a.m. on Wednesday, April 27, 2016, on Interstate Highway 580 in Pleasanton, California took the life of the driver of a BMW. A big-rig slammed into the BMW which caught fire. The driver, a 43-year old man from Brentwood, was trapped inside and died. Although other vehicles also caught fire in the chain reaction accident, no other drivers or occupants were seriously injured.
The fatal Highway 580 fatal crash highlights the vulnerability of people traveling in cars when a large truck accident occurs. Each year nearly 2,500 persons in cars drivers and passengers die in accidents across America involving a large truck.
As explained by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, “trucks often weigh 20-30 times as much as passenger cars and are taller with greater ground clearance, which can result in smaller vehicles underriding trucks in crashes.”
Today’s question comes from Marisol S. in South San Francisco who asks “my friend was on the Greyhound bus that crashed on Monday. They say that the driver may have been too tired and fell asleep. Isn’t the bus company supposed to make sure that the drivers aren’t drunk or falling asleep? How can they let someone who is falling asleep drive a bus? What laws apply? What are her rights?”
A 2014 California collision between a semi truck, a passenger car and a motorcoach led to an extensive investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board. That investigation culminated in the NTSB releasing several recommendations designed to improve highway safety. The accident claimed the lives of 10 people, some of which might have been saved if the safety measures had been in place beforehand.
The traffic fatality data from 2013 has been released. The U.S. Transportation Department announced the results of the report and the news is largely positive. In 2013, traffic fatalities dropped 3.1 percent to a total of 32,719. The news was not all positive, however. Large-truck accident deaths rose for the fourth consecutive year. In addition, the total number of crashes rose. Those crashes were obviously survived at a greater rate, but the collisions themselves are still up. With fatalities down overall, more attention will likely be paid to the areas where safety has not improved.
Semi truck accidents caused 3,964 deaths in 2013. Those deaths include truck drivers, occupants of vehicles involved in accidents with big rigs and pedestrians killed by large trucks. The number of deaths represents a 0.5 percent increase from 2012. The reasons for that increase are difficult to pin down.
As the economy improved in 2013, interstate trucking likely increased. More miles driven often means a greater total number of fatalities. It may also put pressure on an industry that has struggled to fill open truck driver positions in recent years. Overworked and fatigued truck drivers are more likely to cause deadly accidents than well-rested drivers.
Legislative attempts to reduce truck driver fatigue met with resistance in 2014. A measure intended to reduce working hours from the old level of 82 hours over an eight day period was attacked by lobbyists and trucking companies. The measure will not be enforced pending further research.
Source: Carrier Management, “Large-Truck Crash Deaths Increase for Fourth Year,” 24 December 2014
The trucking industry has voiced concerns about its ability to attract qualified drivers in recent years. It has also argued that federal regulations are threatening to make commercial trucking too expensive for consumers. Among the federal regulations it has worked hardest to prevent are those restricting the number of hours a driver can operate his or her vehicle in a given time period. Trucking companies may have found a way to loosen those restrictions this week.
The year-end spending bill is a place for many seemingly out of place measures to be added. Odd provisions make their way onto these bills as members of Congress make themselves useful to special interests. The trucking industry has convinced at least one Senator to attach a provision that would increase the hours truck drivers are allowed to work from 70 per week to more than 82. If an 82-hour work week sounds like a dangerous invitation to drowsy driving, you are not alone.
The primary complaint about the hours of service rules is that it forces truck drivers onto the roads during busy periods, rather than allowing them the freedom to get started before most drivers are up. Mandating a 34-hour break, including consecutive periods in the early morning hours meant that truck drivers were leaving at 6 a.m., rather than at 3 a.m. Traffic might be heavier, but the idea was that the driver would also now be rested enough to drive safely.
Determining how much driving is safe is not simple. Studies may differ on the appropriate amount of rest to ensure that a driver is sharp. The rules need to reflect our best efforts to determine safe limits.
Source: The New York Times, “More Drowsy, Overworked Truck Drivers,” by Dorothy J. Samuels, 9 December 2014
Authorities say that a truck hit a highway median while attempting to pass a slower-moving car last Wednesday morning on Interstate 10.
The truck jackknifed and dumped its load of steel pipes onto the highway. A tour bus traveling the opposite direction either hit the pipes or swerved abruptly to avoid them. The bus flipped over and tumbled down an embankment.
CNN reports that about 25 people were on the bus at the time of the crash.
About two dozen people were injured in this crash and four were killed. Fox News reports that at least seven of the bus passengers were seriously injured.
The tour bus was reportedly en route from El Paso to Los Angeles. Among the passengers was a 12-day-old baby who was protected by his mother as the bus overturned. Both the baby and the mother survived.
“No one has made any allegations about the bus’s maintenance or the bus driver’s actions being contributing factors of this accident,” said the president of El Paso-Los Angeles Limousine Express Inc., which operated the bus.
The Dolan Law Firm handles personal injury cases in San Francisco and throughout the Bay Area. If you or a loved one has been injured in an accident, call us at 888-452-4752.
In underride accidents, when cars strike the sides or backs of semi trucks and continue under the trailer rather than being stopped by the truck body, the automobile passengers run the risk of being decapitated or suffering severe head, face and eye trauma. Federal law requires that certain large, newer commercial trucks be equipped with regulation-compliant rear underride guards. Side guards are not mandated.
Clearly, in any truck vs. car accident, the automobile usually loses, but the loss in a rear underride accident when the underride guard is missing or faulty is likely to be particularly deadly. The IIHS study raises the question whether current regulatory standards are sufficient to keep the public safe.
IIHS Test Results
After months of simulated crash tests with cars and trailers, the IIHS found that most underride guards were unsafe. Tests were conducted using “crash test dummies” in remotely controlled Chevy Malibus, which had earned top ratings for frontal crashes against other autos and light trucks. Despite the safety accolades, the Malibus were no match against the trailers. In a majority of the crashes, the underride guards slammed into the front-seat area and crumpled the cars’ roofs. In some instances, the guards gave way and did not provide any protection at all. Ultimately, the Malibus’ protective crush zones (car parts designed to crumple upon impact and absorb crash energy) did not shield passengers when the trailers’ protective guards did not perform as expected.
IIHS tested trailers manufactured by Hyundai Translead and Vanguard, which had guards that met U.S. safety specifications. It also tested trailers built by Wabash, which had guards that complied with Canadian regulations. Researchers found that the guards performed differently. Essentially, the Canadian guards performed better than the U.S. guards in full-frontal impact tests.
In one example, researchers explained how the underride guard on a Hyundai trailer bent forward, sheared its attachment bolts and broke after the test car hit it at 35 mph. Conversely, a Wabash trailer successfully prevented the car’s roof from being compromised after a similar crash. Institute President Adrian Lund explained, “Strong attachments kept the Wabash guard in place so it could engage the Malibu, allowing the car’s structure to absorb and manage the crash energy. In the real world, this would be a survivable crash.”
So when guards are correctly designed, manufactured and installed, they can save lives.
Current Specifications
In 1996, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, or NHTSA, established the current specification for underride guards. This replaced the prior requirement for “ICC bumpers” that did not sufficiently protect drivers when cars crashed into the backs of trucks. Trailers with rear axles that do not act as barriers were required to have the new guards (also known as rear-impact guards), and these guards were to be no higher than 22 inches from the ground.
However, safety advocates have called for guards to be lowered to compensate for smaller vehicles. They argue that guards at 16 to 18 inches above the ground would perform better and prevent many more underride-accident injuries. Further, the IIHS recommends that loopholes exempting dump trucks, flat-bed trailers and tanker trucks be closed, since underride crashes can also occur with these types of vehicles.
Potential Liability
As a matter of law, truckers and trucking companies owe a duty to use reasonable care in operating their vehicles. This duty extends to incorporating proper safety equipment onto their vehicles and ensuring that they follow safety regulations. If they fail to use such care, they can face liability based on their knowledge of what should be safe based on industry practices and current safety specifications.
The same duty of care flows to truck manufacturers, at fault potentially if they do not design and manufacture underride equipment according to government specifications and industry standards. The IIHS report may not serve as complicit acknowledgement of what equipment should be used on the part of manufacturers or trucking companies, but it could be viewed as a basis for what is considered reasonable given the safety equipment available.
Determining fault and liability is complicated and difficult in most accidents involving semis. If you have questions about safety measures and their legal implications, or if you have been in a motor vehicle accident with a big rig, contact an experienced personal injury attorney.
A Daly City motorcyclist was severely injured after being hit by a San Francisco fire truck. KGO-TV reports that the fire truck driver appears to have been under the influence.
Surveillance video of the scene shows the ladder truck hitting the motorcyclist after running a red light. The 50-year-old motorcyclist suffered a punctured lung, neck and back injuries, and broken bones in his legs, ankles, foot and ribs.
The motorcyclist declined to be interviewed by KGO-TV through his attorney.
“He remains in a wheelchair,” the motorcyclist’s lawyer said. “He stills faces at least one more surgery, and it’s unlikely that he will ever fully recover from his injuries.” The lawyer added the that the motorcyclist is cooperating with the District Attorney’s Office.
There is also an internal corruption investigation underway against the other firefighters who were in the ladder truck. KGO-TV reports that the firefighters went to a nearby bar after the motorcycle accident and the driver began chugging water.
The firefighter’s blood-alcohol level was 0.13 when he was final tested hours later, which is still far above the legal intoxication limit. The firefighter will not face DUI charges however as authorities say that they can’t prove that he was drunk at the time of the crash. Authorities may charge his coworkers for covering for him however.
The Dolan Law Firm handles motorcycle accident cases in San Francisco and throughout the Bay Area. If you or a loved one has been injured in a motorcycle accident, call 415-636-8160 or contact us online.
A major truck accident shut down Highway 12 in Suisun City yesterday morning. The California Highway Patrol says that two big rigs were involved in an accident shortly after 5 a.m.
One of the trucks appears to have rear-ended another. At least one person is dead.
CBS San Francisco reports that the accident happened at Highway 12 between Walters Road and Emperor Drive.
One of the trucks reportedly had a Producers Dairy logo, and appeared to be in worse shape than the other truck.
KCRA reports that the fatality was that of a driver, but it is unclear which truck that driver was in. Caltrans crews had to clean up spilled diesel fuel and about 50 gallons of milk from the highway. The cause of this particular accident is still under investigation but similar crashes are attributable to speeding, driver distraction and brake failure.
Suisun City is a town of about 28,000 about 18 miles northeast of Vallejo. The city borders Fairfield.
