The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has stated that U.S. truck and bus regulators are not taking steps to prevent serious safety hazards before fatal crashes. The NTSB claims that the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has known about deficiencies in bus company practices before some fatal crashes but took no…
The number of highway deaths in the United States in 2012 rose to 33,561. This was an increase of more than 1,000 deaths from 2011. This data was provided preliminarily by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). The same report of data from NHTSA revealed that the number of deaths…
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has published recent data showing that the number of large trucks (those weighing more than 10,000 lbs.) involved in deadly crashes has risen. In 2011, 3,608 trucks were involved in fatal crashes. The 2011 numbers are an increase of 3 percent from 2010 and a…
Illinois has adopted House Bill 1247, which puts an end to the uncertainty as to whether drivers around the state can use hand-held wireless telephones while driving. Under the bill, which was signed into law by Gov. Pat Quinn, a person may not operate a vehicle on a roadway while using…
Many truck accidents are caused by truck driver fatigue. There are new federal restrictions on the number of hours a driver can be in service under the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), which created the hours-of-service rules. Under these new rules, a driver is limited with respect to how long he…
Paul Junod, 51, a locomotive mechanic, fell from an elevated platform while changing shock absorbers at the Illinois Central Railroad’s Woodcrest shop in Homewood, Ill. Junod suffered multiple fractures of his left wrist with median and radial nerve damage, which required open reduction internal fixation with a plate and screws inserted. Following…
A Los Angeles County jury entered a verdict in favor of the family who died in a fiery crash with a semi-trailer truck on Thanksgiving 2009. The Asam family was on its way from California to Oregon to visit relatives for the Thanksgiving weekend. Kylie Asam, who was 9 at…
The amendment to the Illinois Vehicle Code expands the existing ban on e-mailing while driving. The new act goes into effect on Jan. 1, 2014. The law prohibits the use of all electronic communication devices while driving with a few narrow exceptions. Except for hands-free telephone use, GPS navigation, CB…
On April 10, 2010, Daniel Coile, 33, went to Shepherd’s Closet, a store, to pick up a desk purchased by his mother. Coile was told that he would need to load the desk into his car by way of a loading dock at the rear of the store. Shepherd’s Closet or…
On Jan. 14, 2010, Anthony Rossi was driving eastbound on 95th Street in Oak Lawn, Ill. The corner of his car was hit by a semi-tractor-trailer truck on the same eastbound 95th Street driven by the defendant, Steven Groft, as he was changing lanes. The crash caused Rossi’s car to…