Wisconsin Truck Accident Law : Trucking Injury Lawyer & Attorney for Lawsuits in Milwaukee, Madison, Kenosha, La Crosse WI

A recent Wisconsin Dells truck accident highlights the importance of truck drivers in following the federal rules when pulling over for non-emergency stops on the side of the roadway, as well as the importance of pre-trip inspections.

The unfortunate truck accident occurred on February 9, 2010, on I-94/I-90 eastbound near exit 85 outside of Wisconsin Dells, in Juneau County. A semi-truck driver, Michael K. Johnson, 48, of Chicago, Illinois, had stopped his tractor-trailer in order to clean ice from the truck. At that time, a vehicle operated by a Chippewa Falls man and his family was traveling in the same direction and struck the rear of the semi-truck. According to reports, the semi-truck was parked in an actual lane of travel on the highway and also did not have the necessary warning signals. The Chippewa Falls residents in the car all received severe injuries and face a long road ahead of them in their recovery.

This tragic accident could have easily been avoided, had the truck driver simply been adequately trained on the federal rules and complied with them.

The first, most obvious violation by the semi-truck driver, appears to be the failure to properly inspect and remove ice from his tractor-trailer PRIOR to beginning his trip. I have blogged about the dangers truck drivers pose in not properly clearing ice and snow from their trucks several times in the past. The duty to inspect is clearly set out in the federal regulations as follows:

CFR §392.7 Equipment, inspection and use.

No commercial motor vehicle shall be driven unless the driver is satisfied that the following parts and accessories are in good working order, nor shall any driver fail to use or make use of such parts and accessories when and as needed:

…..

Windshield wiper or wipers.

Rear-vision mirror or mirrors.

If, on the other hand, ice had begun to build up after the truck driver’s departure, then the truck driver could have easily utilized one of several truck stops along this stretch of I-94/I-90, in order to safely stop to remove the ice.

The second, most obvious violation by the semi-truck driver, appears to be the failure to safely pull completely out of the lanes of travel. This is a violation of Wisconsin’s Rules of the Road.

The third, most obvious violation by the semi-truck driver, appears to be the failure to adequately utilize necessary emergency signals, which would have given the operator of the automobile ample time to identify the semi-truck and react. The federal rule, CFR §392.22, mandates the use of vehicular hazard warning signal flashers, fusees and liquid-burning flares.

____________________________

If you have been injured due to the negligence of a truck driver or trucking company, call an experienced Wisconsin Truck Accident Attorney.

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks

Today the United States government has finally made it illegal to “text” while driving for professional drivers of large trucks and buses. Last month, a similar ban was enacted to prohibit federal government vehicles from texting while driving. Ray LaHood, the U.S. Transportation Secretary indicated that the new ban applicable to commercial truck drivers and bus drivers will go into effect immediately.

While many states have enacted legislation banning texting while driving, many other states had not yet banned texting.

There has been many recent studies suggesting texting can be more distracting and unsafe that driving under the influence of alcohol.

Commercial bus and truck drivers actually caught while texting and driving will face a fine of up to $2,750.00.

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks

The Obama administration said Thursday it will seek to ban text messaging by interstate bus drivers and truckers and push states to pass their own laws against driving cars while distracted. As a first step, LaHood said President Barack Obama signed an executive order late Wednesday banning all federal workers from texting while driving on government business, driving government vehicles or using government equipment.

The Transportation Department reported that 5,870 people were killed and 515,000 were injured last year in crashes connected to driver distraction, often involving mobile devices or cell phones. Driver distraction was involved in 16 percent of all fatal crashes in 2008 and was more prevalent among young drivers.

Senate Democrats said support was building in Congress to move against text messaging by drivers. The legislation, pushed by Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., would require states to ban texting or e-mailing while operating a moving vehicle or lose 25 percent of their annual federal highway funding.

Eighteen states and the District of Columbia already have passed laws making texting while driving illegal, and seven states and the District have banned driving while talking on a handheld cell phone, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

Bus and truck operators said they would review the plans. Dave Osiecki, vice president of safety for the American Trucking Associations, said his group would work with LaHood "on a comprehensive approach to reducing distractions for all drivers, including professional truck drivers."

American Bus Association President Peter Pantuso said his organization supported the restrictions and most member companies already had policies prohibiting drivers from texting and using cell phones.

Put the cell phone away, and concentrate on driving, before your hurt yourself or others.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

For More Information about Wisconsin Truck Accidents.

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks

Hundreds of different companies around the United States were ordered to shut down because of different safety violations such as suspended licenses to possible drug use.  Many of these companies we are finding out have not shut down at all but simply changed the name of their company and stayed on the roads under a different identification.

The report stated that at least 20 of the roughly 220 commercial bus companies that had been fined and ordered to shut down in 2007 and 2008 had decided to instead of shut down, stay and the road and change their name. 

The investigation found offenders in at least nine states — Arizona, Arkansas, California, Georgia, Maryland, North Carolina, Texas, New York and Washington. The violators owed tens of thousands of dollars in delinquent fines and had scores of violations, from operating without the proper license to failing to test drivers for illegal drugs and alcohol.

Another 1,073 commercial trucking firms are also believed to be possible "reincarnations" after incurring fines and violations, often using the same address, owner name, employees and contact numbers.  In all more than 500 of the tractor-trailer and bus companies were still operating as recently as last month, investigators said.

Companies being allowed to do this is doing nothing but making our roadways unsafe for others to use, and completely ignoring the laws for trucks on the road.  In the future this will be watched to a higher extent and will be stopped.

----------------------------------------------------------------

Learn more about Wisconsin Truck Accident Law

Contact  a Wisconsin Truck Accident Attorney

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks

In response to the October 16, 2005, truck vs. bus collision, in which a commercial motor coach collided with a Whole Foods semi-truck which had lost control and overturned on I-94, the National Traffic Safety Bureau (NTSB) issued new formal safety recommendations addressing the following:

• Driver Fatigue
• Fatigue Technologies
• Fatigue Education
• Hours-of-Service Compliance

Read the full NTSB Wisconsin Truck Accident Fatigue Recommendations.

----------------------------------------------------------------

Learn more about Wisconsin Truck Accident Law

Contact a Wisconsin Truck Accident Attorney

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks

Recently, I was driving from Milwaukee to Iowa for a deposition. As I was approaching the half-way point on my drive, I saw a large chunk of ice flying towards me. The chunk of ice had become dislodged from the top of a semi-truck trailer and was hurling through the air directly towards my face. As only 1-2 seconds elapsed from the time the ice flew from the top of the trailer to the time it struck my windshield, I had no time to react or take any evasive actions.

The ice crashed into my windshield make a loud bang. Fortunately, the ice did not break through my windshield. As I slowed my vehicle, the semi-truck driver continued along at the same rate of speed, obviously unaware of the incident. As the tractor-trailer continued down I-88 westbound, I counted at least 5 more large pieces of ice that flew from the top of his trailer, until finally it appeared as though the trailer was clear of ice. I was unable to obtain any information that could have identified the semi-truck.

Incidents like the above are very common during the winter months. While I am fortunate, many others are injured or killed in very similar incidents involving ice flying from semi-trucks. Ice chunks flying from semi-trucks also accounts for thousands of dollars in property damage each year from damage to windshields and body damage to the vehicles struck by these ice chunks.

Truckers and trucking companies have an obligation to remove ice and snow from their trailers prior to operating their trucks so as to not create such hazards. It is time truck drivers and trucking companies acknowledge this very serious danger. Few trucking companies actually have written policies and procedures in place to ensure drivers manually remove the snow and ice from their trailer before driving.

One of the biggest problems I usually face in handling these types of cases on behalf of those injured by flying ice from semi-trucks is identifying the actual semi-truck that caused the injury. Many times the tractor-trailer drivers usually continue down the road and are never identified.

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks

Yesterday, December 19, 2008, southeastern Wisconsin was hit by over 12 inches of snow, shutting down most of Milwaukee. While watching the morning news during the height of the snowfall, I couldn’t help but notice that for every car out on the treacherous roads that morning there was a semi-truck, several of which had been stuck in the ditch after losing control.

There should not have been any truckers on the road that morning. Truckers are required to use “extreme caution” during such whiteout conditions. The Federal Motor Carriers Safety Regulations require the following:

Extreme caution in the operation of a commercial motor vehicle shall be exercised when hazardous conditions, such as those caused by snow, ice, sleet, fog, mist, rain, dust, or smoke, adversely affect visibility or traction. Speed shall be reduced when such conditions exist. If conditions become sufficiently dangerous, the operation of the commercial motor vehicle shall be discontinued and shall not be resumed until the commercial motor vehicle can be safely operated. Whenever compliance with the foregoing provisions of this rule increases hazard to passengers, the commercial motor vehicle may be operated to the nearest point at which the safety of passengers is assured." 49 CFR 392.14

I have blogged about this issue in the past, but to no avail. During every snowstorm, despite the whiteout conditions, I see semi-trucks ignoring the federal rules and continuing to drive. Whenever weather conditions are so severe that there are few cars out on the road, semi-truck drivers should not even consider operating their tractor trailers. They are required to use a higher standard of care during such conditions, which usually means pulling their vehicle over until the weather conditions improve.

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks

The Wisconsin Department of Transportation recently released their 2006 traffic crash statistics, including those for all reported Wisconsin truck accidents.

According to the report, there were 7,157 large truck crashes in Wisconsin in 2006. Of these large truck collisions, 78 of the crashes resulted in fatalities, and another 1,814 crashes resulted in injuries to occupants of the truck or other vehicle involved in the crash. 84 people were killed in the 78 fatal large truck crashes and 2,642 were injured as a result of the 1,814 large truck crashes.

The report breaks down the age and sex of the large truck drivers involved in Wisconsin accidents. Men aged 45 to 54 were responsible for nearly 2,000 Wisconsin large truck crashes that resulted in fatalities, injuries or property damage. This was the highest demographic of truck drivers involved in Wisconsin crashes.

Of the 7,157 crashes involving large trucks in Wisconsin in 2006, the majority (52%) involved some possible contributing cause attributed to the large truck driver. The top contributing factors are indicated below in order of frequency:

1. Inattentive Driving
2. Failure to Control
3. Improper Turn
4. Failure to Yield Right-of-Way
5. Unsafe Backing
6. Speed Too Fast For Conditions
7. Following Too Close
8. Improper Overtaking
9. Disregarded Traffic Control
10. Driver Condition
11. Left of Center
12. Exceed Speed Limit
13. Physically Disabled
14. Other

The report also analyzed Wisconsin School Bus Crashes for 2006. There were 599 school bus crashes in Wisconsin in 2006, which resulted in 3 deaths and 418 injuries. The most common reasons for Wisconsin school bus crashes due to bus drivers are as follows:

1. Failure to Yield Right-of-Way
2. Inattentive Driving
3. Failure to Control
4. Unsafe Backing
5. Improper Turn
6. Following Too Close
7. Speed Too Fast For Conditions
8. Improper Overtaking
9. Disregarded Traffic Control
10. Left of Center
11. Driver Condition
12. Exceed Speed Limit
13. Other

The full report, 2006 Wisconsin Traffic Crash Facts, can be downloaded from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation website.

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks

In a report issued by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) this week, driver fatigue was again identified as the primary cause of a tragic trucking accident.

The NTSB report arose out of the investigation of the 2005 Wisconsin collision between a bus and a semi-truck. The results of the investigation showed that the Whole Foods truck driver was suffering from fatigue at the time of the collision and most likely fell asleep. The NTSB concluded that the semi-truck driver likely fell asleep, resulting in the truck jackknifing and overturning on the westbound lane of I-94 near Osseo, Wisconsin. The report concluded that the bus, carrying the Chippewa Falls High School band, did not have enough time to react and slammed into the tractor-trailer. Five people were killed and another 35 people were injured.

NTSB Acting Chairman Mark V. Rosenker stated the following:

"Human fatigue has been a persistent factor in far too many transportation accidents.  And if anything, the problem is growing not shrinking.  More needs to be done to reverse the trend so fewer of these tragic accidents come before the Safety Board."

Truck driver fatigue is the single leading cause of semi-truck accidents. The NTSB has made the following recommendations:

To the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration:

• Develop and implement a plan to deploy technologies in commercial vehicles to reduce the occurrence of fatigue-related accidents.
• Develop and use a methodology that will continually assess the effectiveness of the fatigue management plans implemented by motor carriers, including their ability to improve sleep and alertness, mitigate performance errors, and prevent incidents and accidents.

To the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration:

• Determine whether equipping commercial vehicles with collision warning systems with active braking and electronic stability control systems will reduce commercial vehicle accidents.  If these technologies are determined to be effective in reducing accidents, require their use on commercial vehicles.

The full NTSB investigative press release follows.

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks

In May of 2008, the American Trucking Associations (ATA) State Vice President Mike Card provided testimony to the House Subcommittee on Highways and Transit of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee wherein he indicated that many trucking companies are going out of business or barely surviving. According to the ATA, 935 trucking companies with at least five trucks went out of business in the first quarter of 2008, marking the highest mark since the third quarter of 2001. Mr. Card testified that the downturn in the economy and a decrease in demand for freight transportation were also contributing factors. However, he made it clear that the high price of diesel was the primary driving force behind the struggles of most trucking companies.

The skyrocketing increase in fuel prices have led many trucking experts to conclude that the number of semi-truck accidents will increase as truck drivers and trucking companies are forced to make up for the increase in operating costs.

Many attorneys specializing in representing victims of semi-truck accidents expect to see an increase in the number truck accidents due to the increase in fuel prices. These attorneys know that in order for truck drivers and trucking companies to realize the same amount of profit as prior years, they must account for the sharp increase in operating costs due to the rise in fuel prices. Truck drivers and trucking companies are left with three options: one, pass the cost down to their customers; two, make up for the increase in costs by driving more hours; or three, some combination of the first two options.

Since 1939, the federal government has limited the number of hours truck drivers can operate without rest. The current law imposes the following restrictions:

• Truck drivers can drive a maximum of 11 hours after 10 consecutive hours off duty.
• Truck drivers cannot drive beyond the 14th hour after coming on duty, following 10 consecutive hours off duty.
• Truck drivers cannot drive after 60/70 hours on duty in 7/8 consecutive days. A driver may restart a 7/8 consecutive day period after taking 34 or more consecutive hours off duty.
• Truck drivers using a sleeper berth must take 10 hours off duty, but may split sleeper-berth time into two periods provided neither is less than 2 hours.

The federal driving hours restrictions, commonly referred to as the “hours of service” restrictions, have been enacted to help prevent tractor-trailer accidents due to fatigue. Truck drivers and trucking companies are required to maintain driving logs detailing the number of hours driven by truck drivers. The hours of service requirements are in place in an attempt to balance safety issues with the ability of truck drivers and trucking companies to earn profits. Experts fear that the increase in operating expenses due to increased fuel costs will result in additional violations of hours of service requirements, which will ultimately lead to an increase in truck accidents due to driver fatigue.

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks

The Federal law which applies to all interstate motor carriers, including semi-trucks and most commercial buses, requires that drivers use “extreme caution” when driving in severe weather conditions. Any Wisconsin resident can tell you that our weather conditions can change dramatically within minutes. However, dozens of Wisconsin semi-truck accidents occur each year because the drivers do not exercise extra caution when driving in our dangerous weather conditions.

Wisconsin drivers know, and the Wisconsin Motorist Handbook issued by the Wisconsin Department of Transportation requires, that when visibility is reduced due to bad weather drivers must increase their following distance. However, under the federal law, semi-truck drivers have an increased duty. The following federal law applies to all interstate truck drivers:

"Extreme caution in the operation of a commercial motor vehicle shall be exercised when hazardous conditions, such as those caused by snow, ice, sleet, fog, mist, rain, dust, or smoke, adversely affect visibility or traction. Speed shall be reduced when such conditions exist. If conditions become sufficiently dangerous, the operation of the commercial motor vehicle shall be discontinued and shall not be resumed until the commercial motor vehicle can be safely operated. Whenever compliance with the foregoing provisions of this rule increases hazard to passengers, the commercial motor vehicle may be operated to the nearest point at which the safety of passengers is assured." 49 CFR 392.14

Despite this federal law, many Wisconsin truck accidents occur each year due to semi-truck drivers continuing to drive in severe weather conditions.

On January 6, 2008, severe fog caused a series of pileups on I-90 just east of Madison, Wisconsin. In many places along the stretch visibility was less than 100 yards. Despite the poor visibility, semi-trucks continued driving, eventually plowing into many cars, killing 2 people and injuring many more. One witness, who was driving a car, described how she greatly reduced her speed when she recognized that visibility was so poor. She witnessed one semi-truck on her left barreling through a ditch passing her, while another semi-truck on her right crowding her trying to pass. Meanwhile, behind her, there was a 20-car pileup.

In January of 2001, a severe snowstorm caused a 40 car pile-up on I-43, just north of Milwaukee outside of Port Washington, Wisconsin. In that situation, a dump truck continued driving despite the low visibility and eventually lost control, slamming into an SUV that had pulled over due to the poor visibility.

Whenever there are drivers pulled over on the side of the road due to poor weather conditions, truck drivers would be well advised to also pull over. In fact, the federal law suggests they are required to do so.

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks

On July 24, 2008, the United States Government Accountability Office (GAO) issued a long-awaited report detailing how approximately 563,000 commercial drivers had serious, disabling medical conditions.

The 563,000 professional drivers include mostly interstate semi-truck drivers and commercial bus drivers from around the United States, including Wisconsin. The study matched the identities from Commercial Drivers Licenses (CDL) to the lists of disabled individuals from the following:

• Social Security Administration
• Office of Personnel Management
• Department of Veteran Affairs
• Department of Labor

After matching the identities of the professional drivers with the disability rolls, the GAO then chose 12 states to analyze more closely. Wisconsin was one of those 12 states. The results of the more detailed analysis surprised many.

Perhaps the most startling fact obtained from the deeper analysis was that the majority of CDL’s were issued to drivers AFTER they had been declared fully disabled due to medical conditions by the federal government. Further analysis showed that over 1,000 of the drivers in the 12 states had medical conditions which included: vision problems, hearing problems and seizure disorders. Obvious disabilities that could cause significant limitations while driving.

The report confirms what we attorneys that routinely take on interstate trucking and bus companies have long known, that this has been and continues to be a serious problem. For years, we have been dealing with truck and bus drivers that “doctor shop” until they can find a physician willing to certify them as medically fit to drive. We regularly see semi-truck drivers causing serious accidents when they shouldn't even be on the road.

Each year, 5,000 people are killed and over 100,000 are injured as a result of crashes involving semi-trucks and buses througout the United States.

• Email This
• Print
• Comments (5)
• Trackbacks