Reducing Texas truck accidents is a multi-pronged approach, which has been recently aided by the federal Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21).
Our Houston truck accident attorneys understand that one of the primary goals was recently enacted, with federal guidelines requiring full compliance by May of next year. That requirement involves the certification of health care professionals tapped to provide routine physical examinations to approve commercial drivers as roadworthy.
Previously, unscrupulous health care providers would simply give a green light to anyone willing to pay the fee – regardless of whether the prospective driver was actually physically fit to safely operate a large commercial vehicle. In Harris County, the Texas Department of Transportation reports that there were 25 fatalities involving commercial vehicles in 2011. There were nearly 700 injuries related to these wrecks, with about 345 of those being serious.
When it comes to commercial vehicle-involved crashes and fatalities, Harris County is the worst in the state. Only Dallas County came close.
By contrast, Cass County reported 3 commercial vehicle fatalities that same year, with 13 serious injuries.
The National Registry of Certified Medical Examiners is an initiative that requires health care professionals to meet certain criteria and also requires that the exams for bus and truck drivers meet appropriate standards. In order to become certified by the U.S. Department of Transportation, healthcare providers would have to successfully undergo training and testing on the physical qualification guidelines and standards set forth by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.
The physical requirements for commercial drivers are listed in Section 391.41 of the FMCSA’s regulations. All providers will have to be certified no later than May 21, 2014.
Recently, the FMCSA indicated an additional proposal seeking to begin automating the reporting process of driver physical examinations. What this would mean is that drivers would no longer have to carry proof of passing the exam, as it would be stored in an electronic federal database. This information would be immediately accessible to law enforcement officials as well, so that they might easily determine whether the driver is in violation of federal commercial operator laws.
The results of these exams would be available the same day they were completed, as soon as they are entered into the database.
Public comment on the additional proposals will be accepted through early July.
Other elements of the MAP-21 initiative relative to commercial drivers that have already been passed include:
- Mandated electronic logging of drive-time;
- An increase in the base amount of required insurance for commercial vehicle companies and drivers;
- Truck driver education improvements, particularly for those operating big rigs;
- Expansion of park and rest opportunities through additional funding;
- Establishment of a national database of commercial drivers who have been identified as having a substance abuse issue, which will prevent troubled drivers from absconding to another state and continuing to work without detection.
There are still many more initiatives that are planned, but have yet to be implemented:
- The mandating of speed governors that will prevent truckers from traveling faster than 65 miles per hour;
- Routine sleep disorder screening for commercial drivers, particularly truckers;
- Introduction of hair follicle drug testing to make it tougher to hide drug use;
- Installation of video cameras in commercial vehicles that would face both the driver and traffic, which would help determine who is at-fault during a crash.
If you have been injured in a Houston truck accident, contact Hagood & Neumann at (800) 632-9404. Offices in Houston and Galveston.