Commercial truck drivers bear significant responsibility when operating vehicles weighing up to 80,000 pounds. Distractions can have fatal consequences in these situations. Thousands of truck crashes throughout the United States occur due to driver distraction.
Most truck crashes happen when drivers are not paying attention during the three seconds before a collision, which causes severe injuries to the victims. These injuries are often a result of driver negligence in commercial vehicle accidents. Road safety can be improved by knowing what causes driver distractions.
Here are the five ways in which truck drivers can be distracted.
In-Cab Activities
Long-haul drivers rely on truck cabs for both workplace functions and residence duties, which generate special risks of driver distraction. Common in-cab distractions include:
- Eating and drinking: Lack of regular breaks forces many drivers to engage in eating at the wheel while attempting to drive, control and manage their food and beverages, and clean spilled items.
- Adjusting controls: A driver’s attempt to grasp something in the cab creates a 4.57 times higher risk of getting into a crash.
Technology-Related Distractions
Technology devices among truck drivers create the biggest dangers and most dangerous distractions while operating their vehicles. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) established firm regulations to forbid commercial drivers from using their hands to text and hold mobile phones while operating their vehicles since research supports these policies.
Drivers who distract themselves to read or send messages become blind to the road for approximately five seconds and travel 300 feet across a highway intersection, which is equivalent to more than a football field.
Personal phones are the primary distractions that affect drivers during their sessions. Truck drivers also need to focus on dispensing devices, global positioning systems (GPS), and electronic operational equipment. Although some of these technologies fall outside the FMCSA regulatory framework for fleet management, they still pose safety risks that require adequate attention.
External Distractions
The combination of technological devices within the cab and driver-initiated activities get the most public notice, but external driving hazards present serious risks on the road. These include:
- Rubbernecking: Human nature drives people to gaze at events beyond their vehicle, which then leads to lost road visibility. This is called rubbernecking.
- Billboard reading: Roadside advertisements successfully divert driver attention from traffic conditions when created to attract viewers.
- People or events outside the vehicle: The moment of distraction can occur because pedestrians or other drivers or activities next to the road steal attention from the driver.
Mental and Physical Fatigue
The profession of truck driving requires drivers to work for many hours while maintaining constant attention to their work. Exhaustion intensifies the dangers of cognitive distractions as they occur in the driving environment.
- Drowsiness: Drowsy driving proves to be a critical safety problem, according to the FMCSA, because it reduces both reaction times and decision-making effectiveness.
- Cognitive overload: The combination of prolonged driving periods results in diminished mental capacity, which creates conditions for drivers to lose focus through thoughts and fantasies.
- Physical discomfort: The body experiences physical discomfort and pain from prolonged sitting, which draws the driver’s attention away from the road.
The combination of fatigue makes other distractions even more hazardous to handle. Tired drivers can perform fewer safe tasks during multitasking, and they need a longer time to react after brief distractions, leading to disaster.
Documentation and Work-Related Activities
Professional drivers who work with documentation and work-related duties need to complete these tasks while maintaining their driving schedule.
- Reviewing paperwork: Checking delivery information, hours of service logs, or other documentation while driving diverts focus from traffic conditions.
- Work-related communications: Pressure to respond to dispatchers or customers can lead drivers to engage with communication devices unsafely.
Truck drivers need to stay alert while driving, as they share the road with other vehicles. Just a moment of distraction can have devastating consequences for others. If you are injured in a truck accident, it is important to contact truck accident attorneys to pursue legal action and seek compensation.
