CHICAGO PERSONAL INJURY ATTORNEY DISCUSSES PROPOSED IMPROVEMENTS TO COMMERCIAL VEHICLE SAFETY PROGRAMS
The Chicago trucking accident lawyers at the Law Offices of Jeffrey J. Kroll support New Jersey Senator Frank Lautenberg's effort to improve commercial vehicle safety programs. The Trucker recently cited Sen. Lautenberg stating: "My bill would require drivers to receive more training before they are granted a license to drive a truck or bus — and it would require more companies to demonstrate that their drivers understand the rules before they hit the road." Sen. Lautenberg hopes "to kick unsafe drivers and carriers out of the industry."
The bill will also require electronic on-board recorders (EOBRs) to monitor the actual time drivers spend on duty. This discussion comes after our country has seen numerous bus accidents and an increase in truck-related highway personal injuries and fatalities.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration recognized its need for additional technical assistance to improve safety management in monitoring over 500,000 trucking companies and 5 million truck drivers operating on roadways throughout the United States. Safety advocates have additional goals, such as requiring drivers and new companies to successfully complete training and submit to examination before operating on the road. An initial safety audit within six months of operation was also suggested.
Congress must do more to protect American roadways. According to the Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, nearly 4,000 people suffer injury and die in truck crashes with truck driver fatigue playing a major role in truck crashes. With hand-written drivers' logs becoming so unreliable that many in the industry call them "comic books," the federal government must more closely monitor of hours-of-service rules compliance.
The Chicago truck accident attorneys at the Law Offices of Jeffrey J. Kroll are experienced trial and settlement attorneys, having secured millions of dollars in verdicts and settlements for their injured clients. They have represented numerous clients who have suffered catastrophic injuries and wrongful death as a result of negligent truck drivers and the companies that hire and train them. Trucking cases are not like automobile cases as trucking cases often involve a complex interweaving of state and federal regulations. The trucking accident attorneys at the Law Offices of Jeffrey J. Kroll closely monitor this area of the law, continuously studying developments in legislation, laws, rules and regulations affecting the trucking industry and the motoring public. If you have been injured in an automobile, bus or trucking accident, contact us at 312-676-7222, or fill out our contact form.
