A series of truck-related crashes in Texas on Monday has industry experts once again urging four-wheelers to give semi trucks space on major roadways.
Three different crashes involving semi trucks happened at three different times on Interstate 10 in El Paso, Texas on Monday, July 5th, making it clear that motorists need to be reminded once again of proper highway behavior around trucks.
Their focus? The two main issues with four-wheeler behavior – staying aware of tractor trailer blind spots and giving rigs plenty of room.
“When they see trucks the first thing they think is that a truck is going to slow them down so right away they want to get around that truck,” said Stephen Perez, a CDL instructor at Western Tech, to KTSM News.
The typical suggestion is to leave one car space per 10mph they are driving.
“So if you’re driving 60 mph, when you pass a truck you need to give 6 car lengths before you move over,” added Sgt. Marc Couch with the Texas Department of Public Safety.
The two experts also advise against driving in truck’s blind spots.
“On the left side it could angle back towards the drivers side and passing on the right side is even more dangerous. So what will happen is it will build up and all of a sudden you’ll smash the back of a trailer there’s been numerous crashes that I have personal experience working fatality wrecks that stem strictly out of that,” Couch continued.
Motorists, please take heed of these warnings. Truckers are doing their best, but it’s best to help yourself.