Sharing the Road Safely with Big Rigs

At some point in our driving careers, we all get “squeezed” …you know what we mean …you’re traveling down the highway minding your own business and suddenly you feel like you’re completely surrounded by eighteen wheelers. It’s a little claustrophobic, not to mention annoying and potentially dangerous. Indeed, nationwide, trucks are involved in a disproportionate number of crash fatalities. And is it any wonder, considering a fully loaded eighteen wheeler can weigh 80,000 pounds or more! But here’s some news: a 2002 study conducted by the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety that analyzed more than 45,000 fatal crashes and focused on driver errors confirmed that the actions of car drivers contribute more to fatal car-truck crashes than do the actions of the truck drivers. Think about it. Truckers need to train and pass a written and on-road test to obtain a commercial driver’s license in order to operate a big rig, but with the possible exception of high-school driver’s education, automobile drivers don’t necessarily learn (or remember) how to safely share the road with trucks. Trucks simply behave very differently than cars. They take much longer to stop, they don’t corner or track in the same manner, and visibility is much more limited. By adjusting your driving style a bit while driving with trucks, you can easily avoid a potentially tragic accident. Here are a few tips:

-Never change lanes abruptly around a truck, and when passing a truck, make sure you can completely see the front of the truck in your rear-view mirror before re-entering the lane.
-Don’t pass trucks on the right. Driver visibility is much poorer on the right, placing you in greater danger.
-Slow down and let trucks have the right of way. This is especially important when entering a highway from an on-ramp. Remember it takes even the best cars several seconds to get up to cruising speed, while trucks need four times the distance (or more depending on weight) to slow down. This situation is one of the more common causes of “jackknife” accidents.
-Avoid driving alongside or immediately behind a truck. These are “blind spots” and if the trucker can’t see you, once again, you’re in greater danger.
-Never cut in front of a truck, especially when it may need to stop.