Truck Accidents | Grant Law Office - Part 5
What are the Legal Size and Weight Limits for Tractor-Trailers in Georgia?
According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), a large truck weighs more than 10,000 pounds and may either be a single-unit vehicle or a combination vehicle of a single-unit pulling one or more trailers. Although any truck weighing more than 10,000 pounds may be categorized as a large truck, most large trucks on the road tend to weigh much more than that. A large truck’s size and weight limitations are governed by both federal and state laws as there are both interstate and intrastate highway systems in Georgia.
The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) limits commercial trucks to a gross vehicle weight of 80,000 pounds on the interstate highway system. However, the gross vehicle weight is not the only limit. The weight distribution over the axles and wheels are also specified to prevent overloading and improper loading, which can cause the truck and trailer to rollover. Additional interstate size restrictions include a width of 102 inches and a maximum length of 780 inches (65 feet) or 900 inches (75 feet) as determined by the trailer connection. Although there is no federally imposed height restriction, most large trucks follow the 13.6 or 14.6 foot standard.Read more…
What Georgians Should Know about Jackknife Accidents
Any accident involving a big rig increases risk of serious injury, but jackknife accidents have the potential to cause a larger accident area. When a tractor trailer or other articulated vehicle jackknifes, the cab and the trailer fold at their pivoting or linking joint until the vehicle forms an acute angle, like a folding knife, with the cab and trailer facing opposite directions. In a jackknifed position, the big rig would become stuck, usually across multiple lanes of traffic, which can cause chain reaction accidents.
According to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) 2009 Large Truck and Bus Crash Facts, there were 295,215 large truck accidents in that year. Over 4,000 of these were jackknife accidents. The 4,146 jackknife accidents included 3,000 property damage crashes, 1,000 injury crashes, and 146 fatal crashes.Read more…
Overloaded Trucks Jeopardize Safety of Georgians
Georgia large truck accidents can be devastating, but even more so when a truck’s weight exceeds legal limits. Overloaded and overweight tractor trailers are a danger to all other motorists on the road. When a truck is burdened with more weight than it can safely carry, common actions, such as turning, changing lanes, and braking, can be adversely affected. Furthermore, increased weight increases the force of any accident, making an overloaded truck accident especially destructive. Overloading a semi-truck, big rig, tractor-trailer, or 18-wheeler is common practice for trucking companies attempting to make extra profit, though it is both dangerous and illegal.
To prevent overloading, the Federal Highway Administration’s (FHWA) Freight Management and Operations department has established weight limits that apply to all commercial vehicles traveling on the Interstate Highway System. Intrastate trucks may have other weight restrictions as those are determined by the state, though most state trucking regulations coincide with federal ones. The legal weight limit of a commercial truck is 80,000 pounds, with a maximum of 20,000 pounds on a single axle. The distribution of weight, on axles and wheels, is just as important as the total weight of the truck.Read more…
Importance of Truck Driver Hours of Service Regulations
Long-haul large truck drivers transport various types of cargo over thousands of miles and are expected to do so in a timely manner. Unfortunately, many delivery schedules are unrealistic and tractor trailer drivers try to stay on schedule by driving without the required rest or sleep. Commercial truck drivers may operate this way to reach their destination on schedule, but, driving while fatigued will only increase the possibility that neither driver nor cargo will ever reach the destination.
Sleepiness and fatigue while driving increases the risk of a large truck crash in Georgia, which endangers the lives of every other motorist on the road. Fatigue can cause decreased alertness and poor mental and physical performance which may result in slower reaction times, poorly navigating turns, difficulty staying in one lane, over-steering, and under-steering.Read more…
What to Know about Georgia Truck Underride Collisions
Whether called a large truck, semi truck, tractor trailer, big rig, or 18-wheeler, these large and heavy trucks pose many dangers to the occupants of smaller vehicles. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), there were 296,000 large truck accidents nationwide in 2009. Included in this total were 3,215 fatal crashes, and 53,000 injury crashes. The extra length, heavy weight, high center of gravity and tall chassis height increases the risk of a deadly Georgia large truck crash, but especially underride accidents, which are the third leading cause of truck crash fatalities across the nation.
A large truck underride collision occurs when a smaller passenger vehicle hits a straight truck or combination tractor trailer and travels under the truck, oftentimes sheering the passenger vehicle roof clean off in the process. There are two types of underride collisions:Read more…
Common Causes of Georgia Large Truck Accidents: Negligent Truck Maintenance and Faulty Manufacturing
Our previous post concerned large truck accidents caused by Georgia truck driver negligence; here, we will continue our topic of common Georgia large truck crash causes with: 1) Negligent Truck Maintenance; and 2) Faulty Manufacturing or Design.
Large trucks, especially long-haul trucks, can travel over 3,000 miles weekly. This can cause severe wear and tear on a commercial truck’s system and its parts. Brake failure, tire blowouts, and engine over-heating could potentially cause a severe Georgia large truck injury accident, which is why regular inspections and maintenance are necessary and required. If a trucking company or driver fails to perform timely inspections, maintenance, and repairs, the company and possibly the driver, can be held responsible in the event of an accident. Negligent truck maintenance potentially places hazardous vehicles on the road.Read more…
Common Causes of Georgia Large Truck Accidents: Truck Driver Negligence
Large trucks, whether described as a semi-trailer truck, transfer truck, 18-wheeler, or big rig, are very intimidating when travelling along Georgia roads and highways due to their immense size and heft. Also as a result of these reasons, there is an increased risk of serious injury or death in the event of a Georgia large truck accident. This is the first of a 2-part blog series concerning the common causes of large truck crashes: 1) Driver Negligence; 2) Negligent Maintenance or Repair; and 3) Faulty Manufacturing or Design.
A trucker may cause a large truck crash as a result of fatigue and/or inattention, lack of experience or training, or distracted, or otherwise negligent, driving. Truck operators must follow strict federal regulations concerning the number of hours they drive. The life and schedule of a Georgia truck driver can be very demanding, and oftentimes truckers feel pressured to deliver ahead of schedule or even to deliver on schedule. This may cause a driver to tire by working more hours than is legally permitted per day or using illegal or over-the-counter drugs. An exhausted truck driver has much slower reaction times and may even fall asleep at the wheel. If a truck driver does not follow federally mandated work hour limits and causes an accident as a result of their fatigue, they, and possibly their employer, can be held liable for the losses of injured victims.Read more…
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