Chicago Tanker Truck Roller Accident Prevention: NTSB Considers Ways to Decrease Number of Deadly Collisions
The National Transportation Safety Board is considering ways to decrease the number of tanker truck rollover accidents. The NTSB held a hearing last week to determine whether requiring that tanker trucks be equipped with stability control technology could help decrease their high rollover risk.
Cargo tankers are at risk of rolling over because they are made with high gravity centers. 31% of fatal commercial truck rollovers involve tanker trucks. Considering that cargo tank trucks often transport hazardous substances, rollover accidents can be especially dangerous not just for the vehicle occupants involved but also for those who happen to be in the area around the crash site.
It was just last October that an Indianapolis tanker truck rollover collision wrecked a bridge column, blew a giant fireball into the air, set fire to highway billboard, and injured four people. The truck was transporting liquefied petroleum. Our Chicago tanker truck lawyers believe that when possible, it is important that preventive measures be taken to decrease the number of catastrophic truck crashes.
Currently, federal law doesn’t require that trucks be constructed with a low gravity center. This, despite the fact that, according to engineer Douglas Pape (who spoke at the NTSB hearing), doing so by even 3% could decrease the chance of a rollover crash happening by 12%.
Requiring that tanker trucks carry electronic stability systems would allow its sensors to detect when a truck’s weight had shifted. The onboard computer’s system could then automatically step on the breaks until the vehicle was able to regain its balance.
Cause of tanker blast that shut I-465 studied, IndyStar, August 5, 2010
NTSB probes rollovers by hazmat tanker trucks, Google/AP, August 3, 2010
NHTSA nearing truck rollover prevention rule, Today's Trucking.com, August 4, 2010
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