Truck Blind Spots a Major Safety Concern
By Rick Shapiro
Shapiro, Cooper, Lewis, & Appleton
Some drivers mistakenly believe truckers have better vision while on the road because they’re high off the ground. In actuality, trucks possess major blind spots which present a real challenge to the drivers when they’re traveling on congested highways like Interstate 64 (I-64) and Interstate 264 (I-264). The nightmare scenario for any driver is to wind up in a truck’s blind spot resulting in a horrendous car-truck accident that causes serious injury.
For truck drivers, you need to bring your A-game when operating these gigantic vehicles, especially on the challenging Virginia (VA) roadways and driving through passageways like the Hampton Roads Bridge Tunnel. One wrong move or sudden turn can lead to the aforementioned accident scenario that could wind up causing injuries like a broken neck, facial laceration, torn knee ligaments, etc. It could also lead to a reprimand by your truck company if it’s determined the accident was your fault.
If you’re operating a tractor-trailer, remember they are “articulated” vehicles, which means the trailer is flexible in the middle and the side mirrors are the only rearward vision you’ll have on the road.
For regular car drivers, be aware of the “no-zone” laws around the side, rear, and front of trucks, tractor-trailers, 18-wheelers, etc: These are areas where smaller vehicles should not travel next to a large vehicle, according to the Virginia DMV.Here is an illustration of the no-zones:
If both large truck and small car drivers follow safety guidelines and laws, hopefully we can decrease the number of tragic accidents which take place far too often in areas of Virginia like Norfolk, Newport News, Charlottesville, and Roanoke, just to name a few. For example, 78 people were killed in accidents involving a tractor trailer and there 47 tractor trucks were involved in fatal accidents in 2008 in the Commonwealth. These numbers need to go down.
About the Editors: Shapiro, Cooper Lewis & Appleton is a law firm which focuses on injury and accident law and our attorneys have experience handling truck accident cases. Check out our case results to see for yourself. Our primary office in based in Virginia Beach, Virginia (VA) although our lawyers hold licenses in NC, SC, WV, KY and DC. We are ready to talk to you by phone right now—we provide free initial confidential injury case consultations, so call us toll free at 1-800-752-0042. Our injury attorneys also host an extensive injury law video library on Youtube . Furthermore, our lawyers proudly edit the Virginia Beach Injuryboard and Norfolk Injuryboard as a pro bono public information service.
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December 13, 2009
Tags: 18 wheeler, accident, attorney, injury, Shapiro, tractor trailer, truck, trucker, VA, Virginia, wreck Posted in: Virginia (VA) Trucking Injury/Accidents Topics
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