Personal Injury Law

Unsafe Driving Around Commercial Trucks Targeted by Washington State Patrol

By Kirk Bernard, Esq.

The Washington State Patrol reports that between 2005 and 2007, there were almost 5000 commercial truck accidents in Washington alone. These accidents involved drivers of cars who drive unsafely around large commercial trucks. In two-thirds of the accidents, statistics show that the driver of the car was at-fault. These accidents resulted in 175 fatalities and 450 injuries. According to the Patrol, drivers need to leave space for trucks and learn ways to share the road.

John R. Batiste, chief of the Washington State Patrol, says, ?Motorists who drive recklessly, or are unsafe around these big rigs, are asking for trouble. When a car and a commercial vehicle are involved in a collision, the car will lose.?

Given these statistics, the Patrol has a worked with other law enforcement agencies to create the Ticketing Aggressive Cars and Truck (TACT) project. In an effort to reduce accidents, the Washington State Patrol is trying to increase the public's awareness of unsafe driving behaviors around commercial vehicles. These dangerous driving behaviors include:

• cutting off trucks


• tailgating


• failure to yield the right of way


• speeding


• aggressive driving

Full post as published by Seattle Injury Blog on July 08, 2009 (boomark / email).