Semi-Truck Accidents Promote Government to Ban Texting

Semi-truck drivers and large trucking companies are warned to take more precautions while driving. Recent studies demonstrate that approximately 100,000 individuals are severely injured as a result of large trucking accidents each year. Because of their sheer size and force, large commercial trucks that are in accidents tend to result in fatalities.

Although commercial trucks make up a mere 3% of all motor vehicle registrations, they make up 12% of all annual traffic fatalities.

Federal and state governments are making strides towards making our streets safer by enacting laws and regulations that require truck drivers to to take precautions in order to avoid distracted driving and fatigue.

According to the USDOT, distracted driving comes in 3 types: Visual- taking eyes off the road; Manual- taking hands off the steering wheel; and Cognitive- taking mind off of activity. Texting by truck drivers is so inherently dangerous because it combines all 3 types of distractions.

Research from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration demonstrates that drivers who text while driving take their eyes off the road an average of 5 out of every 6 seconds. At 55 miles per hour, this means that the truck would travel the length of a football field without the driver ever looking at the road. Research also demonstrates that truck drivers are 20X more likely to be involved in an accident if they are texting on their cell phone.

Included on the 2009 National Transportation Safety Board's (NTSB) Most Wanted List of Transportation Safety Improvements was a ban on commercial truck driver texting. The NTSB requested that the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration prohibit cell phone use by large commercial truck and bus drivers.

In January 2010, the Department of Transportation enacted an interim cell phone use ban on commercial truck and bus drivers. The USDOT announced on March 31, 2010 that its interim ban on truck driver texting was to become permanent. The ban applies to drivers of interstate commercial trucks and buses over 10,000 pounds. If a truck driver is caught texting while driving, he will now face up to $2,750 in fines. If the truck driver was indeed texting while driving and caused an accident, punitive damages must be awarded in order to send a clear message that texting while driving a large truck is inherently dangerous and will not be tolerated.