The number of large trucks being driven on the roads here in the “Crossroads of America” is considerably higher than it is in other states. Consider this: commercial motor vehicles, like semi-trucks or tractor-trailers, travel over 9.5 billion miles each year on the roads of Indiana alone, according to the Motor Carrier Services Division (MCS) of the Indiana Department of Revenue (DOR). Commercial truck traffic is a big deal in our part of the country.
Of course, trucking is vital to our national economy; the semi-truck traffic on our Illinois and Indiana routes is necessary to keep goods moving across the continental United States. In fact, professional truck drivers are responsible for moving almost three-quarters (71.6%) of all the goods shipped in the United States. For more, read “Most Goods Americans Use in Their Daily Lives Are Transported and Delivered by Truck,” written by Andrew W. Hait and Lynda Lee and published by the United States Census Bureau on February 24, 2021.
Most of these commercial trucks that rumble along our roadways are a special kind of commercial motor vehicle: the tractor-trailer truck. There are several reasons why a tractor-trailer is the preferred type of large truck in moving freight over the long haul. There are also several reasons why this type of commercial motor vehicle is particularly dangerous and deadly in the event of a semi-truck crash.
What is a Large Truck, Semi-Truck, Big Rig, 18-Wheeler, or Tractor-Trailer?
For many, those huge and heavy commercial trucks can be called several things, from big rig to 18-wheeler to semi-truck to tractor-trailer, each referencing the same type of vehicle. However, there are technical distinctions.
- A trailer can stand on its own, with a full load of cargo. It has no engine or cab. It is attached to a vehicle with a motor capable of pulling it at high speeds.
- A semi-trailer is a different type of trailer. It cannot stand on its own; it has no wheels on its front and depends upon a hitch in order to balance and move along the roadway.
- A tractor is the vehicle with the engine that is powerful enough to pull a fully-loaded trailer or semi-trailer at high speeds for long periods of time. This is referred to as the semi-truck or semi.
- The “big rig” or “18-wheeler” or “tractor-trailer” is the combination of motorized vehicle with trailer component hooked together and ready to roll. A “double” or “tandem” is a motorized vehicle hauling two trailers.
Read, “Why Is It Called a ‘Semi Truck’?” written by Ellen Gutoskey and published by Mental Floss on December 15, 2021, and reference the Illinois Department of Transportation regulations regarding commercial trucks.
These are very heavy vehicles that are often being driven at very high rates of speed on our local interstates. A tractor-trailer truck is capable of hauling up to 80,000 pounds gross weight on its axles and legally moving at 70 mph in both Indiana and Illinois.
Greatest Risk of Tractor-Trailer Accidents and Semi-Truck Crashes
When our roadways are filled with motorcycles, SUVs, minivans, pickup trucks, and passenger sedans that are moving alongside these huge commercial trucks, the risk of a serious or deadly semi-truck crash is understandably high. These incidents may well involve serious bodily injury for the truck driver and any occupants of the rig itself. The truck crash usually results in severe or fatal harm to those in any smaller motor vehicles involved in the collision.
Among the most common types of severe semi-truck crashes are:
1. Truck Rollover
In a rollover accident, the trucker loses control of the truck and its trailer(s) with the rig falling to its side or tumbling down a roadside slope. For more, read: Overweight or Overloaded Semi Truck Accidents: Growing Danger of Fatal Crash.
2. Jackknife of the Tractor-Trailer
When there is a lack of coordination between the trailer or tandem and the moving tractor, particularly in bad weather (e.g., winter winds; snow; or ice), then the trailer will fail to align with the movement of the motorized vehicle and enter into another lane of traffic or go off the tarmac. For more, read: Jackknife Semi-Truck Crash: Deadly Danger on Indiana and Illinois Roads.
3. Failure of Tires or Brakes
It is imperative that any large commercial vehicle be sent out into our roadways with proper repair and maintenance. Sadly, all too often tires and brakes are not properly inspected and fixed before the trucker is given the green light and serious or deadly accidents are the result. For more, read: Tire Failure and Fatal Crashes in Indiana and Illinois: the Legal Duty of Tire Maintenance and Preventing Brake Failure Accident Fatalities in Semi-Trucks: Brake Safety Week in Indiana and Illinois.
4. Blind Spot Accidents
Truck drivers sit higher than other drivers on the road and are dependent upon mirrors, rear-view cameras, and sensors to know where other motor vehicles are moving alongside them. Unfortunately, many drivers on the roads with truckers are not aware of this difference in road perception and will move into the trucker’s “blind spot.” Crashes happen when that heavy truck moves into that area, sometimes at high speed and without warning, because the truck driver is blind to the existence of the other vehicle. For more, read: Blind Spots and Fatal Semi-Truck Accidents.
5. Underride or Rear-End Crashes
For any motor vehicle traveling too close behind a tractor-trailer truck in Indiana or Illinois, the risk of having a deadly rear-end collision when that trucker hits the brakes is very high. These rigs have commercial braking systems designed to deal with the reality that it takes more force and more time to bring a semi-truck to a stop as compared to a standard passenger vehicle. Underride accidents are particularly deadly and especially tragic in their consequences. For more, read: Fatal Truck Crashes: Will Congress Pass the Stop Underrides Act? and The Dangers of Aggressive Driving: Following Too Close Behind.
Causes of Severe or Deadly Tractor-Trailer Truck Accidents
Each serious or deadly tractor-trailer truck crash must be investigated to determine the reasons for the accident. Often, expert analysis including accident reconstruction may be required. These accidents can be caused by any number of factors, such as:
- Improper Loading of Cargo
- Mechanical Failures
- Truck Driver Fatigue
- Impaired Drivers on the Road
- Distracted Drivers
- Speeding Drivers.
For more on the current federal undertaking to update earlier studies into the causes of fatal large truck crashes, read “FMCSA to update large truck crash causation study,” published by the National Safety Council on January 27, 2020.
Also read: Shocking New Fatal Crash Statistics: 52% Jump in Deadly Commercial Truck Crashes and Danger of Fatal Semi-Truck Crashes in Indiana and Illinois and the 2021 Infrastructure Bill.
Claims for Justice After a Serious or Fatal Truck Crash in Indiana or Illinois
Both Illinois and Indiana have state laws that provide avenues for justice to those who have been injured or killed in a semi-truck crash or tractor-trailer accident. Of note, Indiana has passed as state law the safety regulations for these types of commercial truck accidents as defined by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. Legal claims may be based upon workers’ compensation, wrongful death, joint negligence, reckless conduct, negligent supervision, defective products, defective design, and more.
There may be more than one defendant who is responsible under the law. Victims and their loved ones may seek justice from motor carriers, trucking companies, shippers, suppliers, manufacturers, repair and maintenance companies, and others whose actions in failing to meet their legal duties of care have contributed to the crash and its resulting harm.
Damages sought can include medical expenses, surgery costs, therapy and rehabilitation expenses (past and future), lost wages, lost future earning capacity, pain and suffering, and more.
For more on trucking accidents and truck crash claims, read:
- Semi-Truck Crashes: Who Can Be Held Legally Responsible for Commercial Trucking Accidents in Indiana and Illinois?
- Trucking Companies Liable for Semi-Truck Crashes in Indiana and Illinois
- Pending Trucking Legislation Before 2021 Indiana Statehouse and the Danger of Fatal Truck Crashes with Faster, Heavier Rigs on our Roads
- The Two Main Differences Between Workers Compensation and Personal Injury Claims for Accident Victims in Indiana and Illinois
- Trial Tactics for Plaintiff Semi-Truck Accident Claims: a Practical Guide from Investigation to Trial.
Here in the Crossroads of America, the danger of a serious or deadly tractor-trailer accident is much greater than in other parts of the country. Please be careful out there!
