car safety

Is The Truck Driver Shortage Making Our Roads Less Safe?

July 26, 2019 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

There aren’t enough truck drivers to fill the needs of the market. Back in 2015, the American Trucking Association, an industry advocacy group, published a report detailing the trucking and transport industry’s struggle to find enough drivers. The report found that the shortage reached 38,000 in 2014 and was expected to reach 48,000 by the end of 2015. By the end of 2018 the number jumped to 60,800, and it’s estimated to more than double over the next decade.

Why are there so few drivers?

There is more than one reason. There is an aging workforce. The industry is not attracting many women to enter the profession. Notably, there is a lack of qualified candidates for trucking companies to choose from.

Quality over quantity is the better way to go.

Professional truck drivers are held to a higher standard than other commuters. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Regulations (FMCSR) is a set of rules that apply to nearly everyone who operates a commercial motor vehicle. The FMCSR covers topics including driver qualifications, safety requirements, how many hours a driver can remain on duty, and the penalties for violating rules.

If a police officer pulls over a family car, there is no driver log inspection. A group of friends taking a cross country road trip will not be decommissioned for failing to show how many hours the current driver has been behind the wheel. Obtaining a commercial driver’s license (CDL) requires much more training than a regular driver’s license does. At a minimum, getting a CDL, requires getting a permit to train with a CDL holder and passing a skills test.

Behind all the news about a driver shortage, is a recent shift in how the United States tackles the issue itself. There has recently been a new focus on deregulating the trucking industry as the United States continues to find ways to make truck driving more alluring to newcomers. As we recently wrote, the FMCSA will likely be having its longstanding drive time rules deregulated as a way to not only place more money in the pockets of truck drivers, but to help drivers get to their destination much quicker. Unfortunately, it has been shown that acts such as this one actually do more harm than good. While it is great that drivers will be able to ship products at a quicker pace, it has actually been shown that leniency with these drive-time rules has a negative impact on overall crash-rates across the US.

While safety remains a serious concern, there are issues that must be addressed.

Trucking industry publication, Heavy Duty Trucking, recently wrote an article regarding the driver shortage. Within the piece, they were able to interview Bob Costello, the Chief Economist from the American Trucking Associations (ATA). In response to a recent report that Costello released regarding the driver shortage, he stated that “the shortage probably seems much worse to carriers because we’re only talking about the quantity of drivers and they [fleets] also have to be concerned with the quality of the drivers they hire.” And that alone is the crux of the issue at hand. At what point does the safety of drivers and those on the road take a back seat to ensure the industry does not falter as a whole?

There are options to delay the effects of the shortage.

While the government is now working to change the regulations revolving around drive-time for commercial drivers, this solution really doesn’t act as a solution at all. It places drivers at risk of increased fatigue instead. With that being said, Heavy Duty Trucking acknowledged that Costello did provide a list of solutions in his recent report that trucking companies may adopt as a way to counteract the estimated reduction of drivers in the industry:

Driver pay increases
More at-home time
Improved driver image
Better treatment and reduced wait times (at shippers)
Transitioning military personnel to truck driving
Lowering the age for interstate operation

Just like everything in life, there is no silver bullet solution to issues that affect everyone. While many may believe that such actions as deregulating current rules will help the industry be more appealing or increase driver pay, there are clearly pros and cons to that approach. It is up to companies to speak up and acknowledge that driver safety must be at the forefront of each of these decisions. If companies can begin understanding and trying to implement these potential solutions, it just may counteract the inevitable shortage in the industry and keep drivers far safer on the roads in the meantime.

Who Pays for My Car After a Crash?

July 24, 2019 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

It is possible to follow all the rules of the road and still find yourself in a motor vehicle collision. If another driver acts unreasonably and crashes into your car, damaging your vehicle, you can make a claim to insurance for property damage. There are a few things that need to be considered before determining who actually pays.

Who caused the damage?

In Illinois, you can make a claim against another driver’s car insurance policy for your property damage if that person was responsible for the crash. If you have collision coverage on your own policy, you can seek compensation that way, too. It is usually your choice as to which policy to request payment from. Here is a list of a few things you can expect depending on which route you take:

Your Insurance

There may be less of a wait because your car insurance company will generally pay for the damage to your car without having to determine who is at fault in a crash. You contracted with that company to provide coverage for the possibility of your car being damaged. That is what it’s there for.
If you choose your policy to pay for your property damage, you will most likely have to pay your own deductible. $500 is a common deductible amount for auto collision policies in Illinois. That is the portion you have to pay out of pocket when your car insurance company pays for your property damage. If the other driver is at fault for the crash that caused damage to your car, your insurance company may be able to recover your deductible from the other driver’s insurance and reimburse you.
If you purchased minimal insurance that only provides liability coverage and no collision coverage, your car insurance company is not obligated to pay for your car regardless of how it was damaged. In this scenario, for the other driver’s insurance company to voluntarily pay for your property damage, they will likely have to accept full responsibility for the collision on behalf of their insured. Without either an admission of fault by the other side or a determination of fault you may not be able to recover your damages from insurance. For this reason, it’s always better to purchase collision coverage if you can afford it.

The Other Party’s Insurance

Regardless of how a crash occurs, insurance companies want to determine the estimated cost of repairs or a total loss before issuing any payments. When dealing with another party’s insurance policy, the process of scheduling an inspection can get delayed if the adjuster has not completed his or her investigation or determined who was responsible for the crash.
An insurance adjuster for the other driver might decide that he or she thinks you are partly to blame for a crash and will want to discount their property damage compensation offer accordingly.
If the other party’s insurance accepts full responsibility for a crash, you will not have to pay a deductible.

What is my car worth?

If your vehicle is determined to be a total loss after a crash, an insurance company will be unlikely to pay for it to be repaired. Instead, as long as the damage is covered by the policy, the company will issue a check for the value of the car before it was essentially destroyed. In other words, if a car is damaged so much that the cost of repairs is more than what the car is worth, it’s considered a total loss.

The value of the car is based on what you could get for it if you were to sell it. Put another way, it’s the market value. That is why it’s important, when financing a car, to make sure you have adequate insurance coverage for collisions and, not to borrow more money to pay for a car than what the car is worth. If you borrow money from a bank, credit union, or dealership to pay for a car and it gets wrecked in a crash, you will have to pay back the money you borrowed to finance the car regardless of how much the car is worth. The loan amount and the value of the car are two separate things that don’t always match up. You may want to consider this when you are looking to purchase a new or used ride.

The bottom line is that it’s wise to purchase as much insurance coverage as your budget will allow. It’s better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it.

Nashville Bans Electric Scooters After Man is Killed

June 24, 2019 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

Nashville wants scooters out until there is more oversight

Nashville mayor, David Briley, took to Twitter last Friday to announce he was submitting a recommendation to the City’s Metro Council to enact legislation that would immediately terminate its shared urban mobility device (SUMD) pilot program, effectively removing all ride-share electric scooters from the streets until further review and oversight of numbers, safety, and accessibility is completed.

As reported by the Tennessean, the crash that caused the injuries that led to the death of a 26 year old man in Nashville occurred on May 16, 2019. Three days later he was pronounced dead at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. According to police, a witness reported seeing the man make an improper left turn after leaving the sidewalk and entering the roadway into the path of an SUV. A toxicology report stated that the man’s blood alcohol content was at 0.198% on the night the crash happened.

Electric Scooters aren’t generally allowed on sidewalks

These electric scooters are meant to be used within bicycle lanes and there was such a lane present in the area where the crash occurred. Riders are not permitted to operate the scooters on sidewalks in Nashville’s business district where this incident happened, according to local police. After the man’s death, his family posted a petition online calling for a ban on SUMD scooters in Nashville.

Regardless of how the crash occurred, drivers have a duty to keep a proper lookout for pedestrians, bicycles, and scooters. And, all people traveling on roads should use reasonable caution to avoid collisions. Electric scooters add an extra element to traffic that make the roads that much more congested. There were 8 companies participating in Nashville’s scooter-share pilot program. Chicago has 10 vendors supplying a combined total of 2,500 e-scooters. However, Chicago isn’t letting them go downtown yet, maybe not ever.

Is downtown the best place for e-scooters?

High traffic areas, like business districts and downtowns, may require more planning on the part of municipalities to make sure that these programs are introduced with safety in mind. Getting somewhere faster, cheaper, and easier sounds great, but that doesn’t matter if riders are more likely to get injured.

The question is, are scooters meant to be a replacement for other forms of urban transportation, or are they meant to be a go-between to allow people to travel from more residential areas to other forms of transit more quickly and cheaply? The go-between model seems to make more sense and that’s the approach Chicago is taking. Mary Wisniewski included a map in her Tribune article on the arrival of e-scooters in Chicago showing where the City will allow these devices to operate this summer. The neighborhoods, as opposed to the loop, may be a better fit for Chicago, which already has a lot of ride share vehicles taking people from place to place in addition to the busses and trains that already service passengers. People who need to get from their home to an L-stop may find a scooter more convenient than walking, hailing a cab, or ride-share. Yet, in these less congested areas, both scooter riders and automobile drivers need to keep a proper lookout for each other to avoid collisions as they share the road.

The bottom line is, no matter if you’re walking, biking, riding, or driving, it’s important to pay attention to other people on the roadway. That means keeping off cell phones and getting a ride from someone else if you’re tired or had too much to drink. And, with decriminalized marijuana coming to Illinois, fellow travelers need to add cannabis to the list of things not to combine with operating a vehicle. Safety should be foremost in everyone’s mind wherever they go.

Kids Under 2 Require Rear Facing Child Seats in Illinois

April 23, 2019 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

Effective January 1, 2019, the Illinois legislature amended the law known as the Illinois Child Passenger Protection Act, requiring children under two years old to ride in rear facing child seats unless they weigh more than 40 pounds. This rule change also includes new fines. Violators will be assessed $75 for the first offense, and $200 for each subsequent failure to comply.

Illinois law already required children under 8 to ride in a secure child safety seat. A child’s safety is, of course, the reasoning behind these regulations.

A study conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that 35% of kids under age 12 that died in car crashes in 2016 in this country were not properly restrained. That means, that of the 732 motor vehicle crash deaths in that age group, at least 256 stories may have gone differently. That’s hundreds of families who might have had a different outcome.

Because Illinois law considers the first violation to be a petty offense, a person who has been charged with violating the Illinois Child Passenger Protection Act for the first time may avoid a conviction by successfully completing a child passenger safety instructional course and proving proof in court that they have a proper child safety seat for their vehicle.

Parents or guardians who have questions about how properly install child safety seats should reach out for help. One resource could be your local fire department. There are certified child passenger safety technicians who are available to help at firehouses, police stations, and sometimes hospitals. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration keeps a list that can be found here: http://www.nhtsa.gov/cps/cpsfitting/index.cfm

Chicago residents can find help by phone too:

Chicago Police Department: Dial 311
Chicago Fire Department: 312-747-6691

Safe travel tips for Fourth of July weekend

June 30, 2017 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

Independence Day is a prime time for celebration. It’s also a time for high alert. In 2014, the National Safety Council declared Fourth of July the deadliest American holiday. Between 1986 and 2002, July 4th weekend consistently ranked at the top of car crashes, totaling 2,743 deaths annually.

The factors of such high crash rates are what you might expect. Of the major U.S. holidays, the Fourth is one of the most notorious for alcohol abuse. Forty-one percent of deaths generally involve high blood alcohol concentrations, second only to New Year’s Eve. Drivers also must share the road with more people traveling over the long weekend. You’d be doing yourself a favor by remembering these safety tips.

Drink responsibly

There’s nothing wrong with enjoying a beer or a cocktail. There is something wrong when you’ve had several and make poor choices. It’s not worth the trouble, even if you’re not driving. Dumbing your sense makes you more susceptible to significant injury, whether it’s car-related or handling fireworks. That said, moderation is the key to a stress-free holiday. Manage your limits, or enlist a buddy to make sure you’re staying within the bounds of normal. You might also consider purchasing a certain amount of booze and sticking to it; once it’s gone, switch to seltzer.

Avoid rush hour traffic

Traffic spikes over the July 4^th weekend. AAA estimates that 42 million drivers will travel more than 50 miles from home close to or on the Fourth. The Boston Globe asked for advice from experts at the traffic app Waze. Anticipate busy roads on the following dates and times:

3 to 5 p.m. Thursday, June 29
2 to 4 p.m. Friday, June 30
11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, July 1
11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday, July 2
11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday, July 3
3 to 5 p.m. Tuesday, July 4

Another thing to remember: Driving fatigue accounts for at least 100,000 crashes per year. Packing and organizing for a road trip often deprives people of sleep, or at the least, alters their normal schedule. Consider taking 15-minute breaks at rest stops in between travel legs to recoup your energy.

Leave the car at home

Most towns and cities organize firework displays from public areas. As a result, people gather en mass. You’re better off taking public transit, an Uber, or alternate forms of transportation to get where you need to go. As noted by several people on TripAdvisor, specifically having to do with the fireworks display at the National Mall, it is “crazy crowded.” You can bet other parts of the country—from Illinois to California—will be too, as thousands of people gather at one central location. It goes without saying, driving anywhere near a mass crowd is a headache you don’t want to deal with.

Here’s the latest list of new cars to avoid in 2016

March 25, 2016 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

It’s that time of year again

Thirteen is this year’s magic number. These are the makes and models, as gathered annually by Forbes contributor Jim Gorzelany with the help of consumer product experts, to determine the worst of the worst. This isn’t an attempt to decry the technological advances and style evolution that has reinvented the auto industry, according to Gorzelany.

“And yet the proverbial cream still rises to the top,” he says. “Some models lead while other lag with regard to their designs, measurable performance attributes, and the degree to which their buyers are ultimately satisfied.”

Gorzelany consulted with analysts from JD Power, ALG and Consumer Reports for a comprehensive overview of the woeful clunkers on the market today. Some of the things that were considered when coming up with the list: Quality and long-term reliability, performance and design, and resale value depreciation.

Safety is sometimes part of the equation, as some models carry questionable design elements that a reasonable person could see as detrimental to the overall protection of its passengers. The Dodge Journey, for example, is criticized for “poor handling, unresponsive transmission, fuel economy, rear visibility, tiny third-row seat, and its poor small-overlap frontal crash test rating from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS),” while the Jeep Patriot had no “pros” but several “cons,” including “engine noise, acceleration, driving position, seat comfort, a too-complicated optional radio, and a poor small-overlap frontal crash test score.” These details should be cause for concern if you’re in the market looking to buy something.

Below is the complete list of cars to avoid in 2016. You can read more details about how and why each car earned such poor marks over at Forbes.

Acura RLX
Cadillac ATS
Chrysler 200
Chevrolet Suburban
Dodge Journey
Ford Fiesta
Ford Focus
Dodge Dart
Infiniti Q50
Jeep Cherokee
Jeep Compass
Jeep Patriot
Nissan Pathfinder