Fatigue contributes to truck wrecks, but too few places for truckers to rest
According to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Admininistration, in 2004, 248 people died in accidents involving large trucks in Georgia. Driver fatigue is a major cause of those wrecks, but there are insufficient safe spaces along the highways for tractor trailer drivers to pull over to sleep. The Georgia D.O.T. allows truckers to park in rest areas and off ramps to catch up on much needed rest, however, truckers say that's not always a possiblitity.
The Shigley Law Firm represents plaintiffs in wrongful death and catastrophic injury cases statewide in Georgia, and in other states subject to the multijurisdictional practice and pro hac vice rules in each state. Ken Shigley was designated as a "SuperLawyer" in Atlanta Magazine and one of the "Legal Elite" in Georgia Trend Magazine. He is a Certified Civil Trial Advocate of the National Board of Trial Advocacy, Chair of the Southeastern Motor Carrier Liability Institute and former chair of the Georgia Insurance Law Institute. He particularly focuses on cases arising from truck wrecks and accidents (tractor trailers truck wrecks, semi truck wrecks,18 wheeler truck wrecks, big rig truck wrecks, log truck wrecks, dump truck wrecks).
I agree there are not enough places for drivers to rest. Then you have states like Indiana who are giveing tickets with big dollar signs attached to truckers for parking on ramps. More and more states are doing the same. Everyone talks about safety and fitgue but no one wants to you to park in their back yard. Just don't hit anyone with that type of thinking or there will be more dollar signs than you will want to look at. I would like to have each and every one who makes these rules and laws to live in a truck for a month before they be allowed to any type of decisions.
tom
Everyone is jumping on the band wagon to blame a truck driver for every crash they are involved in. But the other comment is right. There is no where them to sleep. They take cahaces even being on the roads. When they need to rest They get a ticket. So The fault should lie with the state that does not allow driver to reat on a ramp. You can't have it both ways. Our laws are for who? Thsi makes me very mad that a truck driver gets the shaft every time. I know because I am married to a hard working truck driver.
