Sadly, teen drivers are sometimes seriously injured or killed in collisions with tractor-trailers. A safe driving education program aimed at teens is undertaking an effort aimed at reducing such accidents here in Texas.
The program is called the Teens in the Driver Seat program. The program was developed by the Texas A&M Transportation Institute. The leaders of the program are young drivers/passengers and the program focuses on using peer-to-peer education to promote safe driving among teens. There are over 600 high schools in Texas that the program is active in.
The recent effort the program is undertaking is focused on making young drivers aware of some of the things it is important to keep in mind when it comes to tractor-trailers (such as where tractor-trailer blind spots are, the slower stopping speed of tractor-trailers and the fact that fatigue can sometimes be an issue for tractor-trailer drivers) and how to drive safely when near tractor-trailers. The effort is focused on the San Antonio area, it is being done jointly with San Antonio’s police department, and it has received funding from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.
It will be interesting to see what effects this new effort will have and if similar efforts will be undertaken in other cities in Texas.
It is very important for drivers of all ages to exercise appropriate care when driving near tractor-trailers. It is also very important for tractor-trailer drivers to not engage in conduct, such as drowsy driving, that could endanger the motorists they share the roads with. When a person is hurt or killed as a result of negligent actions by a tractor-trailer driver, legal options may be available to hold the trucker financially accountable for the consequences of their actions.
Source: truckinginfo.com, “Safety Program Aims to Help Teen Drivers Around Trucks,” March 26, 2014
