News about fatal traffic accidents might feel normal to people in Oklahoma, but the CEO of the National Safety Council urges that people set high goals for roadway safety. She has advanced the goal of reducing traffic fatalities to zero by 2050. The council promotes a shift toward a culture of safety instead of accepting the inevitability of traffic deaths. Advances in safety technology have the potential to play a large role in improving vehicle safety, especially for large trucks.
According to research from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, blind-spot detection and forward-collision warning systems could aid truck drivers. Equipment that alerts truck drivers to lane departures and loss of stability also exist that could reduce the incidence or severity of commercial vehicle accidents by as much as 25 percent.
Aside from technology, the NSC also emphasized the need to continue promoting seat belt use. Although 90 percent of people use their seat belts, the remaining 10 percent represent those most likely to die in crashes. Among traffic fatalities, half of the victims failed to buckle up.
Data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reveals the dangers that large trucks pose to their drivers and people in passenger cars. In 2016, accidents involving trucks killed 4,317 people, and 722 of them were truck drivers or occupants in the cabs.
In some cases, negligent actions cause truck accidents. A person seriously injured in a big rig crash might miss work for a long time or suffer permanent disability. To recover financially, an accident victim might want the representation of an attorney. Evidence about truck driver fatigue, speeding or poor truck maintenance identified by a lawyer could be documented in a personal injury lawsuit. An attorney could manage negotiations for a settlement or present the case to a jury.