Operation Safe Driver Week to crack down on speeding
Every year, the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance cracks down on unsafe driving through Operation Safe Driver Week, a period of increased traffic law enforcement. Truck and passenger car motorists in Illinois will be affected. If stopped, they may be issued a warning or a citation.
Last year’s numbers can provide a good indication of what the 2019 event will be like. The 2018 Operation Safe Driver Week involved 51,000 law enforcement officials across North America who stopped a total of 113,331 drivers, issued 57,405 citations and gave 87,907 warnings. A good portion of the citations (16,909 to passenger vehicle drivers and 1,908 to CMV drivers) were for speeding.
Speeding is, in fact, the emphasis of this year’s event, which will take place from July 14 to 20. Speeding was related to 94% of all traffic crashes in 2015 and to blame for 26% of traffic fatalities in 2017, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. It accounts for more than a quarter of all car crash fatalities since 2008, as the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s Highway Loss Data Institute has found.
Some question whether handing out citations can reduce car crash rates. The CVSA found that it does, with programs like “Click It or Ticket” being particularly effective.
There are numberless ways that drivers can cause an accident, and truck driver negligence is not a rare thing. Truckers may speed or violate the hours-of-service regulations and drive drowsy as a result. When truckers cause a crash, the victims may file a claim against them and their employers, but they may not wish to do so before they have retained legal counsel. A lawyer may be helpful in negotiating a fair settlement. If one cannot be achieved, the lawyer may proceed to litigation.