Florida Injury Attorney Blog

A proposed law designed to prevent semi trucks, tractor trailers and 18 wheelers, as they are often called, from driving in the left lane on highways was proposed but did not pass in Tennessee.  Currently trucks are required to avoid the left lane on certain highways with three or more lanes.  Vehicles would still be allowed to drive in the left lane to pass slow moving vehicles one at a time or to avoid vehicles on the side of the road.

In Florida, semi trucks have been banned from driving in the left lane in certain areas. For instance, there is a 40 mile stretch of the Florida Turnpike in South Florida on which semi trucks are banned from driving in the left lane as of February of this year, according to this article.

Supporters of this kind of law suggest that it helps traffic move more smoothly when big trucks are relegated to the right side of the road.  Detractors of the law say that it will encourage drivers to drive faster.

A new law will go into effect on July 1 that prohibits people from driving while using a handheld cell phone.  For drivers 18 and older, driving while using a hands free cell phone will still be permitted.  Additionally, drivers under the age of 18 will not be allowed to drive while using any mobile communication device such as a cell phone, pager, text message device or laptop.  People who violate the new law will be subject to a small fine.  For more information about the new law, see the California DMV website. 

The Florida legislature has considered similar laws addressing driving while using a cell phone or other mobile communication device.  However, none of the bills considered by the state legislature have passed.  It is likely, as accidents continue to occur due to people driving while distracted with a cell phone or other similar device, that this issue will be addressed again by Florida legislators.

Semi truck drivers who drive interstate routes are required to take a drug test before they are permitted to drive commercial motor vehicles on the roads, according to federal regulations governing truck drivers and the trucking industry.  Semi truck drivers are also required to take drug and alcohol tests after causing or contributing to an accident that causes injury or death to another person and/or significant property damage.  The reason for this rule is obvious- because semi trucks and their drivers have the potential to cause such serious damage to people and property by causing an accident with tractor trailers that often weight in excess of 80,000 pounds, it is imperative that semi truck drivers are not driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

High gas prices are a common topic of discussion these days and for good reason.  Whether the significant inflation of gas prices recently is due to supply and demand, speculators in the futures markets, difficulty in accessing oil reserves in less than friendly countries or many of the other factors that affect this global commodity, one thing that is clear that everyone, whether they drive a tractor trailer or small car, can reduce their gas bill by driving more slowly. 

The Department of Energy has released statistics that show that avoiding certain types of improper driving can increase a vehicle's gas mileage rather significantly.  For instance, excessive speeding and quick braking and accelerating have been shown to reduce gas mileage by 33% on the highway and 5% in urban areas.  Additionally, for every 5 miles per hour over 60 miles per hour a person drives, it is costing that person an extra $0.20 per gallon. 

Of course, one additional benefit of driving more slowly and less aggressively is that it is much safer, thereby reducing the number of crashes and decreasing the chances of being seriously injured in a crash.  A study found in the Transportation Research Record showed a direct correlation between reducing speed and fewer accidents and less severe accidents starting at just a 1% reduction in driving speed.  So, there are a couple of very good reasons to drive more responsibly and slowly, especially these days when gas prices are so high and the number of serious injury accidents are very high.

Two years ago, a semi truck driver crashed into the back of a vehicle full of children killing seven of them.  As a result, the semi truck driver was charged with seven counts of vehicular homicide and ten counts of culpable negligence.  The semi truck driver plead no contest to the charges yesterday and received his prison sentence, according to an article on www.News4jax.com. 

According to prosecutors, the semi truck driver had been driving his tractor trailer for about 34 hours with only a short break, which is in serious violation of the hours of service rules which limit the number of hours a semi truck driver can drive without taking a break and going off-duty.  Once a tractor trailer driver has driven for 11 hours, he/she must spend 10 hours off-duty before driving again.  After a semi truck driver has been on duty for 14 hours, he/she cannot drive again until he/she has had 10 hours of rest.  Semi truck drivers are required to maintain records documenting when they are driving or off-duty so their complaince with the hours of service rules can be verified.  For more information about the hours of service requirements for interstate tractor trailer drivers, see our prior blog post here. 

The driver of an 18 wheeler crashed into a sheriff's deputy and firefighter who were directing traffic in North Carolina, according to an article at www.ajc.com.  Apparently, there was heavy fog and smoke at about 5:15 a.m. in the area on the highway where the fatal accident occurred.   The semi truck driver, Robert Kornegay, was charged with two counts of misdemeanor death by vehicle and exceeding a safe speed.  

The government agency charged with trying to reduce injury accidents caused by big trucks and making the trucking industry safer recently released their annual report to Congress on the level of efficiency in the trucking industry in the U.S.  The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) is the government agency that was created to improve the safety level of semi trucks, their drivers and the trucking companies.  As part of that responsibility, the FMCSA is trying to partner the trucking industry with the wireless technology industry to improve efficiencies in the industry and correspondingly, safety. 

However, the recent report found that there were serious inefficiencies in the trucking industry that surely contribute to safety problems and injury accidents on the roads.  The report also found that the volume of freight transported by semi trucks is likely to increase dramatically going forward, which makes the need to correct safety issues more urgent and difficult.

The report indicated that the trucking industry has deficiencies in the following areas related to safety:

• too much waiting at the shipper and receiver, empty trailers and poor routing, which may cause a driver with a deadline to drive faster and less safely
• excessive speeding by semi truck drivers
• tampering with truck components designed to regulate the semi truck's speed
• poor maintenance of semi trucks and trailers
• manual reporting of mileage and hours which leads to false reporting and semi truck drivers driving too many miles and hours which leads to fatigue
• defective equipment on semis, specifically tires, and equipment breakdowns

These are serious safety issues with semi trucks, truck drivers and trucking companies that the FMCSA will continue to have to address as each of these deficiencies, and any combination of them, are likely factors in the number of serious injury and fatal accidents involving big trucks on the roads each year.  One of the challenges mentioned in the report is that many of the semi truck drivers work for themselves or other small trucking companies and are unable to afford the time and resources to implement new technology, even though the technology would improve safety and efficiency.

In order to improve the safety level of drivers of semi trucks and reduce the number of serious injury accidents involving big trucks on the roads, the U.S. government has approved a grant of $1 million to various technical and community colleges around the country to improve the education provided to students enrolled in programs to teach them to be commercial motor vehicle drivers.  The goal is to improve safety training for people seeking jobs as professional truck drivers.  Everyone who drives a semi truck, tractor trailer or 18 wheeler, as they are often called, must pass a test to obtain a commercial driver's license (CDL).  However, the initial and ongoing training for semi truck drivers is often lacking and inadequate. 

The funds to be applied for increased safety training for commercial truck drivers will be given to nine institutions in nine different states, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation.  No Florida school will receive any of the money at this point.

After being involved in an accident that results in death or serious injuries, the driver who causes the injury or fatal crash will be required to submit to a drug test, according to a new law in Kansas.   Florida does not have a similar law, however the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations, which govern semi truck drivers in Florida and other states who drive interstate, do require a semi truck driver to submit to a drug and alcohol test after an injury accident in certain situations.

Under the federal regulations, if a semi truck (aka tractor trailer or 18 wheeler) driver causes or contributes to an accident that results in injury or death to another driver and/or property damage that incapacitates the other vehicle, and the semi truck driver is issued a citation for the crash, the semi truck driver is required to submit to a drug and alcohol test as soon as practicable after the crash.  However, this regulation is policed by the semi truck driver him/herself and the trucking company employer.  If the driver fails to submit to the drug and alcohol test or delays submission to the test until after any evidence of alcohol or drugs is out of his/her system, there is no penalty under the law.  That issue certainly may be raised in a subsequent lawsuit over the damages caused by the semi truck driver in the accident, but there is no recourse with police.

The new Kansas law goes a step further and allows the police to require a driver, whether a regular auto driver or commercial truck driver, to submit to a drug test soon after the accident to determine if he/she was under the influence of drugs at the time of the injury or fatal crash.

Approximately 115 drivers are involved in auto accidents and killed in the U.S. each day, according to The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration.  A large percentage of these injury and fatal accidents are caused or contributed to by people driving while distracted, although the exact percentages are impossible to know. 

Nationwide Insurance conducted a survey of drivers age 16 to 61 to try to learn more about people driving while distracted, i.e. while talking on a cell phone or sending or receiving a text message on a mobile communication device, and also get their opinions on whether those surveyed thought they were safe drivers.  Interestingly, most people said they were safe drivers but also admitted that they often drove while distracted.  About half of the people surveyed said driving while using a cell phone or other communication device was the most dangerous distraction to drivers on the roads.  About 40% of the younger people surveyed admitted that they use cell phones and communication devices while driving. 

Also, about 40% of the people surveyed said they had been in an accident or were almost involved in an accident caused by someone on their cell phone or text messaging.  These results are disturbing as they seem to confirm what is fairly obvious- that people who drive while talking on their cell phones or sending or receiving text messages are dangerous drivers more likely to cause an accident.  However, the individuals themselves, who are likely some of the same people driving while distracted, still consider themselves safe drivers.  There is an obvious disconnect here which likely contributes to the increase in injury and fatal accidents caused by distracted drivers.

The anti-smoking drug Chantix has been linked to serious side effects and approximately 100 accidents.  As a result, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), which is a government agency that issues regulations that are designed to make sure semi truck (aka tractor trailer and 18 wheeler) drivers and their vehicles are safe, recently issued a statement saying semi truck drivers should not be driving commercial motor vehicles if they are on the drug.   One of the regulations that governs semi truck drivers requires them to be physically qualified to drive a semi truck.  Each semi truck driver that drives a commercial motor vehicle interstate must have a medical certificate indicating that he or she was examined and approved by a medical professional.  The medical professional examines the prospective semi truck driver and notes any conditions that may affect the person's driving ability (such as the need to wear glasses) and makes sure he or she does not have any conditions that would disqualify that person from driving.  Examples of conditions that would render a semi truck driver unsafe and unable to drive a semi truck under the regulations are epilepsy and insulin-dependent diabetes.

In order to keep unsafe semi truck drivers off of the roads and help prevent serious injury accidents involving semi trucks, the FMCSA recently announced that semi truck drivers should not be driving while taking the anti-smoking drug Chantix.  Medical professionals who check semi truck drivers to make sure they are physically able to drive are not supposed to qualify a person on this drug.  According to a report by The Institute for Safe Medication Practices, Chantix has been linked to seizures, vision problems, dizziness, heart irregularity and diabetes.  Another report released in late 2007 indicated that the drug Chantix was linked to nausea, fatigue, headaches, suicidal feelings and erratic behavior. 

Clearly, anyone suffering from some or any of these side effects from Chantix should not be driving a semi truck, and the FMCSA recognizes this.  However, the obvious flaw is that during the medical exam where a prospective driver is being medically evaluated, the medical professional will likely only know if the person is on Chantix (or other prescription drugs), if the person discloses this information.  The person's medical or pharmacy records are not obtained for the exam.  Therefore, if a person fails to disclose that he or she is on this drug, any rule preventing a person from driving a semi truck on that drug would have little effect.