You probably do your best to keep a safe distance from trucks on the highway, but do you ever wonder why that is?
Trucks are quite different than cars. Not even the safest cars are guaranteed to work properly all of the time, so it’s no surprise that a larger and more awkward machine runs more safety risks.
These are some of the reasons that trucks are dangerous:
- Due to their mass, it takes longer for a truck to stop, accelerate, or simply slow down. This places more responsibility on surrounding drivers to accommodate the movements of the truck.
- Trucks often carry loads that can detach from the vehicle while driving. Experienced truckers secure their loads pretty well, but it still happens.
- Truck tires explode. Some drivers fail to keep their tire pressure at a proper level. The result is an unexpected explosion that flings debris and startles anyone nearby. Even if a tire popped off a truck without exploding, the inertia of a moving tire can easily cause an accident.
- Truck drivers basically go on a road trip every day. Even with stops, the long hours and lack of stimulation are a recipe for fatigue. Fatigue can be as deadly as driving under the influence.
- Truck drivers don’t have the best visibility, and the size of their vehicle makes other drivers’ visibility a little worse, too. Ideally, you can see your whole environment from within your vehicle. But trucks have confusing blindspots, and their billboard-like figure isn’t helpful to passing vehicles.
- Most people are deeply afraid of getting hit by a truck. Should you get hit, it’s recommended you call an Illinois truck accident lawyer.
