Trailer crash...what went wrong here?

[waldenbound]

Thank God.
And he drove like that with two kids!


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[QinReno]

What amazes me is that the semis typically go 80-MPH on the freeways (except on hills where they go 35), so they don't care about the 55 limit for towing.

 

[tx2sturgis]

What amazes me is that the semis typically go 80-MPH on the freeways (except on hills where they go 35), so they don't care about the 55 limit for towing.

The fines for exceding the 55 mph limit for trucks in California is pretty steep. So most of us DO care. We like to keep our CDL clean. Just FYI, the incident in this video took place in Washington State, according to the uploader comments. 

Speed limits in WA for cars are 70 and for trucks the limit is 60.

This is why I stated a lawyer might be all over this one, since the truck's dashcam/GPS is registering 65-67mph at the time of the incident. 

'Split' speed limits are a problem almost everywhere they exist and are slowly being replaced in most states by uniform speed limits.

.

 

[QinReno]

The fines for exceding the 55 mph limit for trucks in California is pretty steep. So most of us DO care. We like to keep our CDL clean. 

That may be S.O.P. for you, Mr Pirate, but not typical from what I've seen on the interstates, especially in southern AZ and NM. And I never saw a trucker pulled over on my journey through there. 

On I-10 between Quartzsite and Phoenix and on I-10 between Wilcox and Las Cruces, there were horrendous cross-winds and signs saying 'pull over in case of blowing dust'. The truckers were mostly doing 80, and I kept at 65 due to the van blowing around so much. But of note, some of the semis were perfectly stable at 80, while others were weaving back and forth. I assumed the latter rigs had minimal loads.

 

[tx2sturgis]

That may be S.O.P. for you, Mr Pirate, but not typical from what I've seen on the interstates, especially in southern AZ and NM. And I never saw a trucker pulled over on my journey through there. 

On I-10 between Quartzsite and Phoenix and on I-10 between Wilcox and Las Cruces, there were horrendous cross-winds and signs saying 'pull over in case of blowing dust'. The truckers were mostly doing 80, and I kept at 65 due to the van blowing around so much. But of note, some of the semis were perfectly stable at 80, while others were weaving back and forth. I assumed the latter rigs had minimal loads.

I was responding to your assertion that all the commercial trucks in California were 'typically' doing 80 in a 55 zone, which is not possible. Some will be, of course, exceeding the limits, mainly on downhill runs, I've done it myself. But being pulled over in any state while driving an interstate commercial vehicle for speeding at or above 14 mph over the posted limit (considered severe or extreme) can carry hefty fines, several points on his or her license,  and/or a reckless driving of a commercial motor vehicle charge. Which can end up costing the driver his CDL and possible jail time. 

In Arizona and New Mexico, the maximum speed limit for trucks on rural interstates is 75mph, so, 80 mph is not normally deemed 'speeding' by the highway patrol guys. Keep in mind that your speedometer could be off by several mph at those speeds, so what seems like 80mph to you might in reality be 76 mph. Hardly worth a glance by the officers in the patrol vehicles.

And yes, a semi at (or near) gross of 80,000 pounds is pretty stable even in heavy crosswinds. 

Location matters, as does a good understanding of the pertinent federal and state laws.

 

[QinReno]

Good information. I had always figured at 7 miles over the speed limit you were fairly safe from a ticket, but you're saying 14. I like that number much better, . Let's see, 75+14 = 89 MPH, good to go, LOL. Oh well, if I stay at 65-70, I actually get about 20 MPG on the flats.

I have so little conversion stuff in the van I figured that's why it jiggers around in high crosswinds. On I-10 going into Las Cruces, I was trying to stay with the truckers doing 80, but the van was all over the road, but it was ok at 65.

 

[tx2sturgis]

Good information. I had always figured at 7 miles over the speed limit you were fairly safe from a ticket, but you're saying 14. 

I'm not sure if you actually misread what I typed or simply trying to garner a response.

Any officer has discretion, but generally most of them will not pull anyone over for less than 10 over the speed limit on open (not congested) rural highways, unless it's a construction zone, a speed trap, or a school zone. 

What I said was, for a CDL holder, busting the speed limit in a commercial vehicle by 14 mph or more is considered a serious violation against his or her CDL, and can result in suspension or loss of license and other bad results. Speeding citations under that 14mph threshold normally result in points, negative CSA/PSP scores, and expensive fines, but more than 2 of those within a 2 year time span can also cause problems for the CDL holder.

But, anyone, commercial driver or private vehicle driver, exceeding the posted limit by any amount is a possible target for a speeding ticket.

We have detoured this thread by a fair margin....mods take mercy!

 

[QinReno]

I was just funning about the 14 over, and digging for information.

But I think this little sidetrack was VERY appropo to the original thread, as now we (ie, the rest of us) know more about how truckers think. Especially as we have to share the road with them every day, and some of us tend to spend a lot of time swearing at them for various reasons, which I shall not list, .

 

[sephson]

Back in 2003, I helped my dad move from California to Arkansas. We towed a small, overloaded U-Haul trailer behind his 1986 T-Bird. I'm reasonably sure that the trailer actually exceeded the tow rating of the car. This was my first experience towing a trailer. That trailer would begin to fishtail at just above 55 MPH, so we did our best to keep our speed about 55 on the highway. The most important lesson I learned about towing on that trip was that you need to pay attention to what your trailer is doing and be prepared ease off the accelerator at the first sign of a problem. The other, which I tend to apply to all my road trips, is take your time and enjoy the drive. It's far better to get to your destination in one piece rather than not get there at all because you were in a hurry and did something stupid.

 

[Blanch]

The driver is an idiot in this video. And he had his two kids in the car, he is lucky he still has two kids.

The problem is that no one has to take a class or do anything special to be allowed to tow. You don’t even have to pass a written test. To ride my motorcycle I needed a special license and I had to demonstrate competence in front of a dmv employee while riding my bike in tiny circles in the parking lot. If I screw up on my bike I might hurt myself or perhaps someone else. If I screw up towing, like in this video, I could do a lot more damage and possibly kill everyone involved. It makes no sense to me.

When I bought my travel trailer I told the dealer I had never towed anything before. He pulled my truck and trailer off the lot and told me good luck. I found an empty parking lot not too far away and practiced for a long time. Then I drove out to the freeway slowly. The guy in this video seems to be learning things the hard way.


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[Dingfelder]

That may be S.O.P. for you, Mr Pirate, but not typical from what I've seen on the interstates, especially in southern AZ and NM. And I never saw a trucker pulled over on my journey through there. 

On I-10 between Quartzsite and Phoenix and on I-10 between Wilcox and Las Cruces, there were horrendous cross-winds and signs saying 'pull over in case of blowing dust'. The truckers were mostly doing 80, and I kept at 65 due to the van blowing around so much. But of note, some of the semis were perfectly stable at 80, while others were weaving back and forth. I assumed the latter rigs had minimal loads.

Truckers are terrifying in Southern Oregon too.  Long stretches of freeway have no lights and the cheapest reflectors you could find, if any at all.  It gets "country-dark" around here, and even at the best of times it is sometimes hard to see where the road ends and what part of it you're in.  When it rains and night and visibility drops even more, terrifying truly is the word for freeway driving -- and as a Southern California driver, I'm not easily spooked.  But here you have the trucks climbing right up your butt even in the pitch dark with no road illumination, seriously tail-gating even in the slow lane, and it's just awful and irresponsible.

I don't know what they're thinking, but they drive like they're on drugs and probably are.

 

[QinReno]

Truckers are terrifying in Southern Oregon too.

80,000 pounds versus a flea. As RV people, we have to deal with huge numbers of truckers all the time. And certain times of the day, they are the most common thing on the interstates, especially in bad weather when everyone else is leery to drive, they still have schedules to keep.

From what I've seen, most RVs are going near the speed limit, while a lot of regular cars and semis are doing 15-20 MPH faster. As I don't like to drive my van over 70, it's a continuing issue every time I go out. There is no solution to being passed all the time, just have to keep watching.

I-80 between Sacramento and Reno is especially bad. Steep up and downs, and continuous curves. The semis change between doing 80 and doing 40. The one thing I avoid like the plague is being to the outside of a semi when going down and around a curve. I once had a guy come up behind and cross the lane boundary due to a bit too much centrifugal force, but luckily noticed him out of the corner of my eye at the last second and got out of the way.

 

[highdesertranger]

blaming the guy in the semi in the OP is BS he did nothing wrong. highdesertranger

 

[QinReno]

blaming the guy in the semi in the OP is BS he did nothing wrong.  highdesertranger

Nobody blamed "him" for that situation, but semis are a still problem when on the highway.

 

[tx2sturgis]

blaming the guy in the semi in the OP is BS he did nothing wrong.

True, but that is not the way our legal system works. Not even close. 

I'm sure you have seen all the huge billboards with a smiling lawyer, 'Hit by a Truck?' and his phone number.

In the video, you and me see an un-safe RVer. But he is NOT a professional driver.  

Lawyers and juries see a situation that could have been avoided had the professional driver (who is always held to a higher standard) slowed down or moved over. They want to see his RODS. lol....Um, that's Record of Duty Status. In other words, log books. Was his logbook 100% compliant, or was he past his allowed HOS (hours of service) driving time? Was he late? Was he tired? Was he speeding? (yes) Was he on the phone? Did he receive or send a text while driving in the last 7 days? Was he impaired by drugs or alcohol? We know he was listening to music, was he distracted? How is the companies CSA score? Was the truck maintained according to the regulations? Was he on the correct road for the location he was headed to? Was he snacking on potato chips? Had he been in a fight with his wife this week? Was he in debt, causing him to feel pressure to pull loads even on his scheduled days off? Etc Etc Etc. 

There is a pot of gold at the end of nearly every serious truck accident, (even if the truck was not directly involved) and when a lawyer can convince a jury that the truck driver was even 25% percent at fault, Ka-Ching Ka-Ching.

25% of millions of dollars in accident coverage insurance is STILL a lot of money.

THIS is why most commercial trucks on the road today are using dashcams and other electronic 'safety' equipment.

 

[QinReno]

Don't most trucking companies have a requirement now about taking a break every 12-hours or so, rather than driving for 20-hours at a stretch?

 

[tx2sturgis]

Interstate commercial drivers are bound by federal rules. And so are the companies.

The jist of it is that most drivers can drive up to 11 hours and then have to take a 10 hour break. There are also on-duty-not-driving hours that can count against those hours, so waiting on a dock to get loaded or unloaded will count against those hours if they amount to more than 3 hours per day. Intrastate (in state only) drivers must adhere to the regulations of the state they operate in...which are generally less restrictive. The e-log (electronic logs) mandate is a requirement for most interstate drivers now. 

There are always exceptions to any of these rules, of course. 

If you can't get to sleep sometime, start reading the federal regulations (part 395) that pertain to interstate trucking. 

The book is about an inch thick!

Here is a brief summary if you are curious:

 https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/regulations/hours-service/summary-hours-service-regulations

 

[Minivanmotoman]

Well, RV driver's are the worst..