Safety on the road is a top priority for trucking companies

With nearly 3 million semi-trucks on the road in the United States every day, driver safety – for the trucks and the other vehicles sharing the road – has been an industry priority for decades.

“For anyone who puts a truck on the road, safety is always a top concern,” said Brenda Neville, president and CEO of the Iowa Motor Truck Association. “Just because of the sheer number of miles they’re on the road, safety has to be a priority.”

In the last 10 years the number of fatal accidents involving a large truck has increased by almost 50% in the United States. Trucks were involved in 5,700 fatal accidents in 2021 alone – an 18% increase over the year before, according to the National Safety Council.

That same year, 117,300 large trucks were involved in crashes in which someone was injured – a 12% increase from 2020.

What may be surprising, however, is that the majority of those accidents – between 80 and 90 percent each year – are not the fault of the truck driver.

“Most trucking companies are going to employ very safe operators,” Neville said, “but just with the sheer exposure we have on the roads, accidents are going to happen.”

“Owners – companies or owner-operators – are always looking for ways to minimize their exposure and be safer,” Neville said. “They know how important it is to have a safe truck out there. … Anyone who puts an 18-wheeler out there on the road bears a big responsibility; if there’s an accident involving an 18-wheeler the outcome likely isn’t going to be a good one simply because of the size.”

A new regulation that went into effect in February 2022 requires drivers applying for their first commercial driver’s license in Iowa to undergo entry-level driving training and testing before taking the formal CDL training and test.

“It’s extremely important for us in Iowa that the drivers have all the education they need before they get on the road,” said Ronee Slagle, CDL program manager with the Iowa Department of Transportation.

In the entry level program drivers must receive a score of 80 percent or better on their exam before they can advance to the more vigorous CDL training, Slagle said, and their instructors have to feel confident in their driving ability during the skills and road test.

“That’s just the first step,” she said. “They’re still not able to get on the road until they do the more vigorous testing. They’ll need to show us they know how to do an inspection, they can pass a basic controls test on a range with a variety of maneuvers. Once they pass that, then we take them on the road and test their skills there.”

“It’s a multi-step process,” she said. “There are a lot of hoops they have to jump through but we believe these are important hoops to ensure they are safely driving those trucks.”

State and federal regulators are making policy and protocol changes for drivers, as well.

“Federal regulations limit hours of service for drivers, limiting the number of hours a driver can be on the road, and requiring two 30-minute breaks from driving every day, which helps ensure they’re well-rested,” Neville said.

Some companies go “above and beyond,” she added.

“Companies will have ongoing safety training, and some have safety cameras – both inward and outward facing, and those are very controversial, as you can imagine,” she said.

The cameras record what is happening both outside the truck as well as inside, Neville said.

Some trucks are equipped with “speed limiters,” which prevent the truck from going faster than 65 to 70 miles per hour.

“Some of the most common complaints we get are from motorists who are unhappy because they’re going down an interstate and they get behind some of these trucks,” Neville said. “They may not know about speed limiters and may get frustrated that they can’t go any faster, especially if they’re going uphill.”

Most motorists, particularly in truck-heavy Iowa, tend to be understanding, she said.

To that end, she said, there are things motorists can do to help keep the highways safer for themselves and for truck drivers.

Ditch the distractions.

“Most people generally believe distracted drivers are the ones on their phones,” Neville said. “Phones are definitely a part of it, but there are other distractions: people eating while driving, putting on makeup, as well as being on the phone.”

She said paying attention to the road is the most important thing drivers can do to help keep roads safe.

Get around the trucks if you can.

“There are so many blind spots for truck drivers, and they can’t stop on a dime, especially if they’re pulling a loaded trailer,” she said.

Use your turn signal, and give trucks the space they need to make turns.

“At the end of the day it ends up just being about common sense,” Neville said. “Be courteous of each other, be attentive, be kind. As long as there are cars and trucks intermingling on the roads there will be accidents, but we’re going to continue to do whatever we can to educate everyone to be safe.”