Dealing with a truck accident can leave you feeling overwhelmed and constantly in pain. There are a few sources of distractions that can lead to a trucker veering off the road and crashing into another vehicle.
Learning about these common issues and how they influence truckers can help you as you drive.
Texts and dispatching devices
According to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, some of the biggest sources of distractions for truck drivers are phones and dispatching devices. Taking their eyes off of traffic and their hands off the wheel leaves truckers vulnerable to simple mistakes on the road.
Stopping too late or not reacting quickly enough to swerve out of the way of incoming cars can cause a deadly accident. Even a few seconds of distraction can impact the reaction time of a truck driver, since bigger vehicles take longer to fully come to a stop.
People or items along the road
Turning around in a truck’s seat to stare at a person or read a sign can be just the amount of time truckers need to crash into another vehicle. When people are focusing on words in the distance or what other drivers are doing to their left or right, it means they are not focusing on what is in front of them.
Food and drinks
Holding a drink in one hand or trying to unwrap a sandwich can leave even skilled drivers struggling to stay in control of a vehicle. A trucker who takes their eyes off the road in order to eat a meal cannot properly grip the wheel or turn in time to avoid accidents.
Even small actions and habits can make a big difference when a trucker is around other smaller vehicles.