Truck-Related Fatalities Continue to Decrease

Bill Messerschmidt

Manager

Messerschmidt Safety Consultants

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), there was a substantial decline during 2009 in the number of drivers and vehicle occupants who were killed or injured in crashes involving large trucks (i.e., trucks over 10,000 pounds).

Last month, NHTSA released an Early Edition of Traffic Safety Facts, an annual publication containing a compilation of highway crash statistics. According to the Early Edition of Traffic Safety Facts 2009, 3,380 drivers and occupants were killed in crashes with large trucks, and 74,000 drivers and occupants were injured.

Those numbers seem large until one considers that the Federal Highway Administration has estimated that large trucks traveled a staggering 288 BILLION miles on US roadways during 2009. That equals a fatality rate of 1.17 persons killed per 100 million miles of truck travel, and 25.7 persons injured per 100 million miles.

In 2009, both injuries and fatalities declined substantially from 2008, when NHTSA estimated that 4,245 people were killed and 90,000 were injured, and the fatality rate per hundred million miles was 1.37.

Check out NHTSA’s Early Edition of Traffic Safety Facts 2009.

View the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety's large truck crash statistics.

National Work Zone Awareness Week: April 4-8, 2011

Bill Messerschmidt

Manager

Messerschmidt Safety Consultants

This week, April 4-8, is National Work Zone Awareness Week. This event is sponsored by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) each year for the purpose of increasing drivers' awareness of the dangers associated with highway work zones.

The theme of this year's event, "Whose Life is on the Line?" references the fact that almost 80% of the individuals killed in work zone crashes are motorists - not highway workers.

In 2009, there were 667 people killed in highway work zones and maintenance zones. This is a substantial decline since 2000, when 1,026 people were killed. To help keep these numbers on the decline, the National Work Zone Information Clearinghouse has created a comprehensive website with links to training, safety equipment, statistics, and regulations. The site is a valuable resource for contractors, workers, supervisors, and traffic planners.

The FHWA's website contains a great deal of useful information on work zone safety, including tools for work zone management, process review, and performance metrics.

Good News: Traffic Fatalities in 2010 Fell to Lowest Levels in Reported History

Kelly Messerschmidt

Technical Communications Manager

Messerschmidt Safety Consultants

US Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced Friday that despite the fact that American drivers drove significantly more miles during 2010, the number and rate of traffic fatalities in 2010 fell to their lowest levels in recorded history.

Factors that may have contributed to the reductions include:

• Department of Transportation (DOT) safety programs and public safety campaigns, including their website, distraction.gov, and national summits on distracted driving,
• The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's (NHTSA) push for swift, voluntary reporting of safety defects by automakers,
• NHTSA's encouraging the development and use of crash prevention technologies, such as electronic stability control and lane-departure warning systems,
• The DOT's Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) encouraging the use of Safety Edge technology and promoting the use of cable median barriers and rumble strips to reduce the number of crossover head-on collisions.

Truckload Carriers Association (TCA) in Support of Legislation and Regs Mandating the Use of Electronic Logging Devices

Benjamin Smith

Principal Technical Analyst

Messerschmidt Safety Consultants of Mississippi

The Board of Directors of the Truckload Carriers Association (TCA) voted to support government legislation and regulations mandating the use of electronic logging devices (ELDs), which are used by fleets to ensure compliance with hours of service (HOS) regulations and reduce inefficiencies in paperwork. This vote took place on March 13, 2011, at the Association's annual convention.

In addition to voting to support the mandatory use of ELDs, the TCA’s new policy also includes seven areas the TCA believes should be addressed when developing legislation or regulations mandating ELD use. These areas include relieving motor carriers who use compliant ELDs of the burden of retaining supporting documents for verification of driving time, as well as tax incentives as a method for helping facilitate the adoption and use of ELD systems.

Read the TCA’s press release.

New Child Safety Seat Recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics and NHTSA

Kevin Jones

Technical Analyst

Messerschmidt Safety Consultants

Ready to get your toddler out of that rearward facing child seat and into a forward facing seat? Not so fast. With crashes being the leading cause of death for children ages 3-14 years, "early graduation" from infant, rearward facing, forward facing, and booster seats continues to be an issue for child safety advocates and organizations.

Previous recommendations from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) were that children should remain in a rearward facing car seat until they are at least one year and weigh at least 20 lbs. However, in the April 2011 issue of Pediatrics, the AAP recommends that children remain in rearward facing car seats until age two--or until the child exceeds the height and weight limits of the child seat. Read the AAP's press release (03/21/11).

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has also made revisions to its recommendations based on the latest statistics on child injury in crashes. NHTSA is advising that children stay in rearward facing seats and booster seats as long as possible. NHTSA also recommends that the height and weight limits of the child seat be used as a guideline for transitioning to the next stage child seat. Learn more at NHTSA's website.

The instruction manuals that accompany newly-purchased child safety seats provide specifications on height and weight limits. These instruction manuals also provide instructions on how to properly install the child restraints. If you need additional assistance with child safety seat installation, locate a child safety seat inspection station near you.

Rand McNally Releases New, CSA-Compliant Version of TruckPC

Benjamin Smith
Principal Technical Analyst
Messerschmidt Safety Consultants of Mississippi

Stemming from a joint venture with DriverTech in late 2010, Rand McNally announced today that they are launching a new version of their electronic on-board recorder (EOBR) system, TruckPC. This system will be in compliance with the new requirements set by CSA and will be fully integrated with the vehicle.

TruckPC will provide navigation tools, mileage calculation, driver behavior monitoring, pre-trip inspection instructions, and interactive satellite mapping for fleets and their drivers. In addition, TruckPC will also automatically track hours of service (HOS) for drivers.

TruckPC and other EOBR systems will make compliance with CSA easier for fleets that are facing the challenges of new governmental safety regulations.

Read Rand McNally’s press release. Learn more about CSA, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration's initiative to improve large truck and bus safety.

Benjamin Smith Lectures at Southern Miss

Benjamin Smith, Principal Technical Analyst for MSC Mississippi, was invited as a guest lecturer for The University of Southern Mississippi’s forensic science seminar course on February 28, 2011. Ben covered topics including crash reconstruction, Event Data Recorders (EDRs), forensic mapping, and forensic photography during this seminar. Email Ben Smith.

In March 2011, Benjamin will teach a section of Assistant Professor Dean Bertram, Ph.D.'s crime scene documentation course at Southern Miss. The course serves both undergraduate and graduate students.

Benjamin is an alumnus of The University of Southern Mississippi’s Forensic Science Department. He returns annually as a guest lecturer on various crash reconstruction topics.