Las Vegas, Nevada Truck Driver Fatigue
Truck driver fatigue is a major cause of truck accidents. The Las Vegas law firm of Bertoldo Carter Smith & Cullen represents individuals and families injured in large-truck collisions, many of which are caused directly by a truck driver’s fatigue, which is common among long-haul drivers on U.S. roads today.
Truck drivers are under pressure to “deliver the goods,” literally – to get their cargo to its destination as soon as is safely possible, and sometimes sooner. In many cases, the more deliveries that a truck driver can make, the more money he or she can make. This results in drivers trying to drive too many hours at a stretch. Too many hours on the road is one of the factors that can produce driver fatigue.
Federal Regulations About Driving Time
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) is aware of the problem of driver fatigue. Truck drivers must get a strictly controlled Commercial Driver’s License (CDL), and federal regulations limit the number of continuous hours that a long-haul truck driver can be on the road. However, many truck drivers know how to get around these limits.
Drug Use Contributes to Trucker Fatigue
Truck drivers can also be tempted to take stimulants and other illegal drugs to help them stay on the road and stay awake. Methamphetamine and cocaine use among truck drivers is illegal, of course, but it still occurs. Truck drivers who use these drugs (or alcohol) while they’re on the road are prone to the extreme fatigue that follows stimulant use.
A tired truck driver is an impaired driver. He or she may make mistakes in judgment, or become an outright driving hazard. We’ve all heard the reports of exhausted, snoozing truck drivers who plowed into cars on a freeway or at a toll booth. An 80,000-pound, 75-foot-long truck can do a huge amount of damage when it’s being driven by a fatigued trucker.
Contact a Truck Accident Lawyer
Many serious injuries and fatalities are caused directly by truck driver fatigue.
