Atlanta has always been a transportation hub from its founding as a railroad town in the 1840s. At the crossroads of I-75, I-85 and I-20, Atlanta is a center of interstate trucking activity as well. On our highways we see trucks from most of the largest trucking companies in the…
While Georgia is a long way from the Mexican border, as a tractor trailer and big rig accident trial lawyer based in Atlanta, I have for several years followed the controversy over allowing Mexican trucking companies to operate in the United States. Concerns about safety rules and practices in Mexican…
Container freight trucks entering and exiting the Port of Savannah have presented a substantial safety hazard on surface streets near the port. Now Gov. Nathan Deal is supporting a proposal to build a new 3.1 mile highway link between I-95 and the Port of Savannah. It would be used primarily…
The Safe Roads Act, proposed bipartisan legislation sponsored by Senators Mark Pryor and John Boozman, both of Arkansas, would tighten the handling of truckers‘ drug and alcohol tests. If passed into law, this bill would require medical review officers, employers, and service agents to report to the Federal Motor Carrier…
The SmartDrive Safety study of commercial drivers observed with in-vehicle recorders that capture video, audio and vehicle data during sudden stops, swerves, collisions and other risky driving maneuvers reached a surprising conclusion. The study showed that the top 5 percent of drivers with the most driving distractions were distracted 67…
Trucking safety practices over the past year and a half have been impacted by adoption of the Comprehensive Safety Analysis (CSA) program. The CSA has three components that measure safety performance, evaluating high-risk behaviors and crafting appropriate interventions. For commercial motor carriers, the standards significantly alter how truckers and companies…
The impact of economics on trucking safety is insidious. One thing that turns up with truckers who are witnesses in our cases is the economic squeeze on independent owner operators who try to operate safely in compliance with the rules. Of immediate concern is the fact that shippers pay fuel…
In truck crash litigation in Georgia, I often find that smaller trucking companies have the least focus on enforcing safety rules. For example, we are now preparing for trial a case in which the trucking company repeatedly had been fined for scores of violations of the same basic safety management…
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has scheduled a public listening session on its proposal to revise hours-of-service (HOS) rules for commercial truck drivers on February 17, 2011 in Arlington, Virginia. The agency will also webcast the session live with a forum on its website for comments and questions…
As a trucking safety trial attorney in Georgia, I find that one of the most valuable sources of information about accident prevention in the trucking industry is the Truck Safety Coalition. It is a partnership between The Citizens for Reliable and Safe Highways (CRASH) Foundation, and Parents Against Tired Truckers…