Accidents involving semi-trucks and other large commercial vehicles can be very serious. These accidents often lead to serious injuries and in some cases death. While there are many reasons for these big rig accidents, around 40 percent of them are caused by driver fatigue. This is one of the easiest factors of truck crashes to remedy. Our Wisconsin readers might be interested in learning a bit about driver fatigue.
There are several things that can lead to a semi-truck driver feeling fatigued. Working prior to driving doing tasks like loading or unloading the truck is one of these factors. Tight rosters, irregular driving hours, early starts to shifts, long hours on the road and insufficient rest between shifts can also cause driver fatigue. All of these can be remedied by following federal guidelines and working to improve company guidelines.
Surprisingly, truckers aren’t immune to being affected by driving conditions. Long, boring drives can induce fatigue. Driving on familiar roads, hot weather and noise can also lead to fatigue while driving. Even factors like stress and poor health can lead to fatigue while on the roads.
Truckers should be aware of some of the common signs of fatigue so they can take appropriate steps to combat it. Drifting onto the side of the road, driving on the white line, tailgating, blurry vision, wandering thoughts and needing stimulants are just a few of the signs of fatigue that drivers must be aware of.
With the tight deadlines and these other factors, some truckers might be involved in accidents. If you are injured in a truck accident, scrutinizing a variety of evidence might help you to build a case against the trucker, trucking company or another liable party.
Source: Stop Unsafe Trucks, “Accidents & Fatigue” accessed Mar. 13, 2015
