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I read a Los Angeles Times story about the causes of accidents between cars and trucks. After reading it I started to rethink my position on truck safety. Currently, the focus is centered around trucks. The idea is simple. Heavily regulate the trucking industry and the roads will be safer.

Indeed the rules and regulations have improved the quality of drivers and the monitoring of drivers and fleets. But there are still accidents. According to the article, a huge reason for those accidents is NOT the truck drivers but the car drivers.

81% of accidents are attributed to car drivers and small trucks when a heavy truck is involved

So my next question is, why is the trucking industry still getting a lions share of the attention on who is to blame. Maybe the real focus needs to be on the car driver side of the equation. The rules and regulations surrounding what people have to know to get a license need to heavily focus on training people to drive around trucks.

I have read of some municipalities that have outreach and training programs to teach people how to drive around heavy trucks. This is great but I think the numbers are showing that there is a critical need to expand the reach of these types of programs.

Nobody wants unsafe roads, but to focus just on the trucks only, is not effective. The numbers are showing that the car drivers either do not understand either the importance of following certain safety procedures or do not really know how to drive around heavy trucks to begin with.

Just like there are campaigns to push safety at work sites around tow men and highway workers, there needs to be campaigns that CONSTANTLY remind the public of how to drive around trucks and the importance of doing the right things when they are driving around trucks. A bumper sticker that says "I make wide right turns" is not enough. If safety is really important, then this issue needs to be addressed with the same intensity that the Federal government has pursued regulations on heavy trucks.

Your thoughts?

http://www.latimes.com/business/autos/la-fi-hy-car-truck-crashes-20130212,0,7321710.story