18 wheeler traffic safety

Wrong – maybe dead-wrong.  Even if an 18 wheeler has the best driver and follows traffic laws, other laws come into play -- laws of visibility, mechanics and physics which don’t apply as much with cars. Thus, you must drive defensively around an 18 wheeler, even if it seems steady, straight and in control.

Tailgating is taboo

Take tailgating. You do it – we all do – but the worst place to do it is behind an 18 wheeler.

For one thing, the driver possibly can’t see you, even with many mirrors. For another, you can’t see beyond the truck you’re following. If a car ahead veers into his lane and the trucker hits his brakes, guess who could become a pancake dripping off his mud flaps? You, that’s who.

To stop or not to stop

That’s not to say 18 wheelers can stop as readily as smaller cars, even with air brakes. They can’t. They’re too heavy and have far greater momentum. So even an alert trucker, if forced to slam on  brakes, can do only so much.

How much? If a fully-loaded 18 wheeler is going 55 mph on flat, dry terrain, it will travel the length of a football field between braking and stopping. If you’re the car ahead of such a vehicle, those 100 yards for stopping won’t mean a touchdown for you. They may mean you’re dead.

You also must be wary of 18 wheelers making wide turns. They do this because the length of their vehicle  may require it.  So always – always -- heed truckers’ turn signals and steer clear.

 If a truck eases to the right, don’t see this as an invitation to pass on the left. He could be about to make a wide left turn – and is probably signaling that intention. So watch those signals and stay back.

Another 18 wheeler road hazard that’s no fault of the driver is a blowout.

Those 18 tires take a heavy beating while carrying loads of up to 80,000 pounds. If a tire blows out, it can hurl slabs of rubber like a cannon. You don’t want to be near such catastrophic missiles, which is another reason you don’t want to linger near 18-wheeler trucks.

Also don’t forget that their drivers have limited visibility. A dozen mirrors won’t eliminate all blind spots. If you can’t see a trucker’s face on a mirror, chances are you’re in one.

You may need an 18 wheeler accident lawyer

Such factors don’t even account for bad truck drivers. They can be as reckless, distracted, drunk or sloppy as the bad car drivers you see each day. And if they are, their margin for error – and yours – is even more reduced, given the limitations and hazards of their huge vehicles.

So treat 18 wheelers differently than smaller vehicles. While you always should drive defensively, do so even more around these barreling behemoths. And if you should fall victim to an 18 wheeler accident, notify an 18 wheeler accident lawyer with Jim S. Adler & Associates for a free case review.