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Quiz:
Safely Sharing the Road with Trucks?
Young
drivers, and everyone else for that matter,
are often confused about how to safely
share the road with large trucks. Unfortunately,
this confusion shows, as 70 to 75 percent
of all truck-related auto fatalities are
caused by car drivers, according to AAA
and the Department of Transportation.
Additionally, 35 percent of those fatal
accidents occur when car drivers find
themselves in a truck's blind spot. Safe
highway merging and stopping distances
are essential for highway driving. For
a quick refresher, or to quiz your knowledge
on truck safety, consider the following
questions.
Where is the
largest blind spot on a large truck?
Answer: The right side of the truck.
If possible, avoid passing a truck on
the right side.
True or False: Big trucks have more tires
and larger brakes so they can stop faster
than smaller vehicles.
Answer: False. It takes a fully
loaded truck traveling 60 mph the length
of a football field to come to a safe
stop.
How many lives
could be saved by staying out of trucks'
blind spots?
Answer: Approximately 1,300 lives
per year in the United States are lost
in crashes where vehicles are in a truck's
blind spot. According to the Federal Motor
Carrier Safety Administration, 35 percent
of all fatal accidents with large trucks
occur in trucks' blind spots.
What is a safe
traveling distance for a car when following
a truck on the highway?
Answer: Stay at least 20 to 25
car lengths behind the truck so that you
have time to react to any changes in the
road ahead including debris, accidents
or slow downs. Also, keep the trucks'
mirrors in your sight at all times.
True or False:
Truck-involved fatal accidents have decreased
over the past five years.
Answer: True. According to the
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
(NHTSA), fatalities in crashes involving
large trucks have decreased every year
since 1997 despite more trucks and cars
being on the road than ever in the United
States.
For more information on truck safety,
visit Share
the Road.
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