05/12/2015 // EW Truck Wreck Lawyers // (press release)
Going above the speed limit is a risky activity no matter what vehicle a driver is operating. However, as statistics show, a great number of drivers choose to speed despite the known risks. According to statistics from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, speeding is one of the most common causes of the thousands of traffic crashes that occur each year. Related accidents reportedly result in billions in annual economic losses.
Source: TRAFFIC SAFETY FACTS 2012 Data
“NHTSA estimates that the annual economic cost to society of speeding-related crashes is $40.4 billion. In 2012, speeding was a contributing factor in 30 percent of all fatal crashes, and 10,219 lives were lost in speeding-related crashes. Speeding-related fatalities increased by 2 percent from 10,001 in 2011 to 10,219 in 2012.”
To read more visit http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/812021.pdf.
Recently in Fort Worth, five people were killed and 12 others hurt in a crash involving an 18 wheeler on I-30.
Source: CBSDFW Report “Five Dead, 12 Hurt In Crash On I-30 In Fort Worth”
“FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) – Five people were killed, 12 hurt after a crash involving an 18-wheeler along I-30 in East Fort Worth early Sunday, authorities said…The accident was reported just before 2:30 a.m. in the westbound lanes off the freeway near Oakland Boulevard.”
To read more visit http://dfw.cbslocal.com/2015/04/12/four-dead-13-hurt-in-crash-on-i-30-in-fort-worth/.
Four of the victims were pronounced dead at the scene and another person later died at the
hospital. Although the cause of the accident was still under investigation at the time of the report, speeding may have played a role in the early morning crash.
According to the Fort Worth, Texas based 18-wheeler accident lawyers of Eberstein Witherite, LLP speeding is an act of negligence that a number of truck drivers engage in for a variety of reasons. These include rushing to meet strict deadlines for pay incentives, alcohol impairment, and other motivating factors.
Says Attorney Amy Witherite of the issue, “in many cases we have seen, truck drivers were determined to have been attempting to make a tight delivery or pickup deadline, not having had sufficient periods of rest, or simply failed to pay attention to their driving speed. These types of excuses; however, are never reasonable means to justify failing to obey the law and act negligently.”
A push is being made to tighten regulations for truck drivers to reduce the instances of fatigued driving, attempts at forcing drivers to meet unreasonable deadline expectations, and other forms of negligence that in many cases contribute to them choosing to speed.
Transportation safety advocates began pressing for such accommodations even more strongly following the highly publicized accident involving actor and comedian Tracy Morgan. In the collision, which involved a Wal-Mart 18 wheeler and limousine bus, Morgan was critically injured and another person died.
According to the attorneys of Eberstein Witherite, rules were implemented by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration fairly recently in an effort reduce truck accident fatalities in the U.S. One of the rules forces drivers to take breaks following the first 8 hours of their being on the road. The maximum weekly driving time was also decreased to 70 hours per week. Says Amy Witherite, “these rules are important for protecting drivers and passengers from acts of negligence that lead to thousands of deaths each year.”
Many await to see the impact the rules and other truck driving safety reform efforts will have on decreasing the number of annual truck accident linked to speeding over time.
Media Contact:
Lucy Tiseo
Eberstein Witherite LLP
Phone: 866-774-5410
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