The Importance of Safety Technology for 18-Wheelers
Large semi-trucks are all over the roadways taking up space and driving along with all of the other types of vehicles. When you are a smaller passenger vehicle and you are traveling next to a large big rig, your safety is at increased risk. You could be hit by any type of vehicle on the road and sustain injuries or die from your injuries, but crashes with trucks often cause massive devastation. In most cases, a crash with a truck leads to serious injuries if not death.
Across the nation, truck-involved crashes with fatal consequences have been rising. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration notes that the number of fatalities from truck-related crashes in 2016 rose by 5.4% from the previous year. Some emerging technologies that are built into our cars including forward-collision warning or automatic emergency braking have shown great success in helping bring down the high numbers of crashes on American roads. However, for trucks, advanced safety technology is largely absent.
Why Don’t Trucks Have Advanced Safety Features Like Passenger Cars?
Many commercial trucks driving on American roads do not have advanced safety technology. One of the reasons this is so is because a lot of these trucks are over a decade old. Because they are so old, the technology simply didn’t exist when they were manufactured. As of 2015, Securing America’s Future Energy indicated that only 15% of truck fleets were equipped with safety technology.
According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, out of all the large truck-related crashes that take place every year, approximately 28% of these crashes do not have to happen. These accidents can be prevented or at the very least, the severity can be decreased if trucks were outfitted with the following safety technologies:
- Forward collision warning system
- Automatic emergency braking system
- Blind-spot warning system
- Lane-departure warning system
- Stability control
While passenger cars are made with many safety technologies as standard features, experts say it is actually more important for trucks to have safety technologies be standard. With large tractor-trailers weighing as much as 80,000 pounds, a collision with a passenger sedan that weighs only about three to four thousand pounds can spell complete devastation for the occupants of the passenger sedan. When you have been in an Arizona truck accident, it is vital that you get a fair settlement to help you with all of your damages. The Arizona truck accident attorneys at ELG will fight to protect your legal rights and to acquire as much compensation as possible on your behalf.
Connect with an Arizona Truck Accident Attorney Today
The Spanish-speaking, bilingual Phoenix serious injury attorneys at ELG are here to answer all of your questions and provide legal counsel when you or a loved one suffered injuries in an Arizona truck accident. The Pheonix truck accident attorneys at ELG are committed to providing the highest quality legal services to all victims who were injured by the negligent actions of others in the greater Phoenix region. Call the Phoenix personal injury attorneys at (623) 877-3600 to schedule your free consultation.
