In 2015, There Were 4,067 Fatalities in Crashes Involving a Large Truck
Washington, D.C. – At a time where truck-crash deaths are rising, U.S. Senator Bob Casey (D-PA) is calling on his colleagues in Congress to do more to increase truck safety. Truck drivers’ often drive for hours without much-needed rest and recovery, and their rest breaks are increasingly in jeopardy due to funding in Congress.
In the FY17 THUD appropriations bill, there are policy riders that will roll back “hours of service” (HOS) rules that were implemented to give truck drivers longer rest periods to recover and reduce fatigue. Casey is calling on Congress reject all attempts to repeal important HOS protections for truck drivers.
“The less sleep and breaks that truck drivers receive, the more likely they are to put our families and themselves in danger on the roads,” Senator Casey said. “We have to remember that these are the roads that take our kids to school, our elderly to their appointments and our first responders to the sites of emergencies. We have an opportunity to remove this provision and we should take it.”
HOS rules protect truck drivers from the dangerous effects of fatigue. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has repeatedly cited fatigue as a contributor to truck crashes and included reducing fatigue related crashes on the 2016 Most Wanted List of safety changes.
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