Sleeping 18-Wheeler Drivers and Distracted 18-Wheeler Drivers

We see wreck cases at an alarming rate where one of the drivers was distracted or so fatigued that they could barely keep their eyes open. It is scary enough that the average driver is in control of a 2,000 to 4,000 pound vehicle but it is terrifying to think that an 18-wheeler driver is fatigued or looking at his cell phone screen when he is driving an 18-wheeler rig weighing in at 80,000 pounds and traveling 70 miles per hour.

Drivers of 18-wheelers are required to log their hours on the road compared to hours of sleep. This information is very important in any 18-wheeler case to show how long a driver had been up and when or where the last place he got a good nights sleep was. Without this rest these 18-wheeler owner operators become dangerous on the road.

Also many states require that drivers of any sort use hands-free cellular devices or not use cell phones at all while driving. It has been shown that the kind of distraction caused by cell-phones or on-board computers leads to slower reaction times and more crashes.

New advocacy groups similar to Mothers Against Drunk Driving will seek to raise awareness about the dangers of texting while driving or distracted driving. These activities are especially dangerous when the driver is driving an 18-wheeler. Since the advent of MADD drunk driving related deaths have dropped 50 percent. A similar awareness and change is absolutely necessary in distracted driving and fatigued driving. Some studies have determined that reaction times for drivers take at least a second longer when they are using their cell phone or texting. This can translate to it taking 20 to 40 feet longer to stop, which often causes wrecks.