Truck Underride Crashes Can Be Deadly, And Avoidable with side and rear guards

In the USA bicycle safety advocates call for these side guards to be made a requirement on all commercial trucks. The safety improvement would affect safety for cars, pedestrians, motorcycles and bicyclists.

Bicyclist Hit by Dump Truck and Pinned Underneath in Otay Mesa Collision

For pedestrians, bikes, small cars, scooters, mopeds, electric bikes, even small car drivers: being near a large truck in traffic on city streets is an everyday dangerous type of situation.

If large trucks and dump trucks were required to have rear and side guards, all vulnerable road users would be safer.

In the USA bicycle safety advocates call for these side guards to be made a requirement on all commercial trucks. The safety improvement would affect safety for cars, pedestrians, motorcycles and bicyclists.

“Truck lateral protective devices are vehicle-based safety devices designed to keep pedestrians, bicyclists, and motorcyclists from being run over by a large truck’s rear wheels in a side-impact collision. While large trucks comprise 4 percent of registered vehicles, large trucks are involved in 10 percent of pedestrian and bicyclist fatalities. In 2018, these nonmotorist fatalities rose to 541, the highest since 1990.” Truck Lateral Protective Device

The lives that could be saved by mandating side and rear guards for big trucks and semi trailers would be huge. The most recent NHTSA analysis looked only at crashes that occurred at speeds under 40 mph, and most of the experts in the USA gave push back, “NTSB, IIHS say feds significantly underestimate lives that can be saved.”

That benefit shortfall alarms the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), which contends NHTSA’s analysis focused only on crashes in which the front of a passenger vehicle slides under the side of a trailer. NHTSA did not fully consider other crash types that would likely benefit from side guards installed on a truck that could prevent such an “underride,” according to NTSB, such as high-speed sideswipe crashes, impacts with vulnerable road users such as motorcyclists, cyclists and pedestrians, or side underride collisions with single-unit trucks.

“Further, NHTSA only calculated potential safety benefits for about 20% of fatal crashes in which NHTSA estimated that the passenger vehicle was traveling under 40 mph,” wrote NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy in comments filed in response to the proposal. “For crashes where the estimated speed was over 40 mph, NHTSA’s analysis assumed that a side underride guard would have no effectiveness.”

Is The Poor Condition Of America’s Roads Putting Cyclists At Risk?

Cycling should be an enjoyable pastime and a convenient means of getting from one place to another. However, 70% of fatal cycling accidents on America’s roads occur in urban areas and there are multiple non-life-threatening accidents in these locations each year, too. The US has some treacherous roads, dotted with multiple potholes which make cycling and even walking particularly hazardous. Additionally, motorists are a leading cause of bike accidents with cyclists being doored an increasing occurrence.

America’s pothole crisis

America has a massive pothole problem which is a major talking point for residents and the government. In 2016 the President pledged to fix the country’s highways with a $1 trillion plan but 2017 has come and gone and the roads are still in the same state as they were in 2016. Now, the roads are in a critical state. The American Society of Civil Engineers has graded the country’s roads a substandard ‘D’ rating and estimate that more than $4.5 trillion needs to be invested in order to bring the nation’s highways back up to a reasonable stabdard.

The risks of potholes to cyclists

With potholes able to cause substantial risk to vehicles, many motorists will try to avoid them whenever possible. But sudden swerving cars and trucks can have awful consequences for cyclists traveling on the same stretch of road and can result in vehicles maneuvering directly into them and knocking them down. It’s not always easy to spot a pothole until you’re immediately in front of it which makes it too late and unsafe for a cyclist to avoid and so their only option is to ride over it and risk being thrown off their bike.

Dealing with cycling injuries

A cyclist with significant injuries sustained on a poorly maintained road may seek legal action, especially if their injuries impact their quality of life, their ability to perform day to day activities or attend their place of work. Cyclists shouldn’t be afraid to seek the advice of a personal injury attorney if they have sustained injury as a result of potholes while on their journey. An attorney can give professional advice, their honest opinion on the likelihood of a successful lawsuit and provide invaluable information regarding how best to proceed with their claim. Call the Goetz Law Firm at 858-481-8844 if you are injured in a bike accident.

America urgently needs to take action to protect cyclists from sustaining preventable injuries on the nation’s poorly maintained roads.

September 2017 LA Times
Los Angeles OKs $6.5 million to settle lawsuit after cyclist hit a pothole

Los Angeles will pay $6.5 million to settle a lawsuit from a man who suffered severe injuries after his bicycle hit a pothole in Sherman Oaks, lawmakers agreed Wednesday.

Two years ago, Peter Godefroy lost control of his bicycle when it hit a pothole on Valley Vista Boulevard, throwing him to the ground. The crash left him with broken bones and a severe traumatic brain injury, according to his suit.

San Diego Reader December 2016
Torrey Pines cyclists’ pothole nightmare continues
“I hate to state the obvious, but this is completely avoidable.”

The City of San Diego is poised to pay out another large sum for failing to maintain safe bike lanes and roads for pedestrians.

On Tuesday (December 13) city councilmembers are expected to finalize a $235,000 legal settlement to Cathleen Summerford, who was seriously injured after her bicycle struck a pothole in 2014 on Torrey Pines Road in La Jolla. The money will be paid from the city’s public liability fund.

Oakland – Mercury News
Oakland to pay $3.25 million to cyclist in pothole crash

After failing for years to address complaints about a pothole-laden thoroughfare in the Oakland hills, the city will pay $3 million to a cyclist who suffered severe injuries after crashing on the street.

In a closed session Tuesday, the Oakland City Council agreed to a $3.25 million settlement with Dulcey Bower, who crashed while bicycling downhill on Mountain Boulevard between Ascot Drive and the Highway 13 onramp.

Bicycle or Pedestrian Accident?

After the Fatal Uber Self Driving Car pedestrian accident, Uber, and the news was telling us that the pedestrian just walked right in front of the car, no warning, and the pedestrian was not in a crosswalk.
The Police in Arizona were examining the car, and no one had seen the onboard video camera yet.
People started, “victim blaming.”
This is what Janette Sadik-Khan said, she is an inspiring ‏author of the book Streetfight and former NYCDOT Commissioner, “The first non-driver death of the autonomous age and police are already blaming the victim. “Crossing outside of the crosswalk” was never a valid excuse for traffic deaths, and it provides no cover for autonomous mobility companies.”

This is an important lesson in why you should always talk to an experienced, proven, personal injury attorney, even if you are blamed in the DMV Accident report by the responding officers. I had two pedestrian cases last year, both pedestrians were struck in a marked crosswalk. Both pedestrians had the walk sign. Both cases had the same responding police officer who, amazingly, blamed the pedestrian in both cases. In one DMV Accident report, the officer even noted that the driver admitted not seeing the pedestrian, her windshield condensation and hadn’t cleared up, it was dark, and she was turning left through the crosswalk, she didn’t even realize she had hit a person! Fortunately for my clients, there were witnesses and I was able to get both of these pedestrians substantial settlements, even though they were actually blamed.

Will news correct story that pedestrian did not just appear?
Or what about the distracted driving of this human backup driver in the cab?
You can clearly see in the before image that the driver IS NOT LOOKING AT THE RODE.

Before this fatal pedestrian accident occurred, we already knew that self driving cars were having trouble with pedestrians and bicyclists, and bike lanes!

Uber admits to self-driving car ‘problem’ in bike lanes as safety concerns mount
Engineers were working to fix programming flaw that could have deadly results for cyclists days after Uber announced it would openly defy California regulators

Uber began piloting its self-driving vehicles in its home town of San Francisco last week, despite state officials’ declaration that the ride-share company needed special permits to test its technology. On day one, numerous autonomous vehicles – which have a driver in the front seat who can take control – were caught running red lights and committing a range of traffic violations.

The San Francisco Bicycle Coalition has released a warning about Uber’s cars based on staff members’ first-hand experiences in the vehicles. When the car was in “self-driving” mode, the coalition’s executive director, who tested the car two days before the launch, observed it twice making an “unsafe right-hook-style turn through a bike lane”.

That means the car crossed the bike path at the last minute in a manner that posed a direct threat to cyclists. The maneuver also appears to violate state law, which mandates that a right-turning car merge into the bike lane before making the turn to avoid a crash with a cyclist who is continuing forward.

Furthermore, AI are not good at identifying cyclists nor pedestrians.

The Cyclist Problem
Self-driving cars aren’t good at detecting cyclists. The latest proposed fix is a cop-out.

Autonomous cars have a potentially fatal flaw: They struggle to detect and react to cyclists on the road. According to a January 2017 report by IEEE Spectrum, bicycles are generally considered “the most difficult detection problem that autonomous vehicle systems face.”

Bicycle Law – “Idaho Stop”

California is considering legalizing the Idaho Stop for bicyclists.

Many transportation safety experts say that the Idaho Stop is actually safer for bicyclists.

The change would be to the part 21200 California Vehicle Code to read:

[…] a person operating a bicycle approaching a stop sign, after slowing to a reasonable speed and yielding the right-of-way to any vehicle or pedestrian in the intersection or approaching from another highway or street so closely as to constitute an immediate hazard during the time the person is moving across or within the intersection, may cautiously make a turn or proceed through the intersection without stopping. However, if required for safety, the person shall stop before entering the intersection, and may proceed after yielding the right-of-way.

The California Bicycle Coalition has a petition and is looking for signatures in support of this Assembly Bill and they explain the issue succinctly:

Almost all street intersections in California pose as a safety threat to people on bikes. The longer it takes for a person on a bike to pass through an intersection, the greater likelihood that they’ll get hit by an oncoming vehicle. […] When people on bikes cross more safely at intersections and traffic flows more smoothly, it is a win-win for everyone.

The Vision Zero Department of Transportation push to end all deaths on our roads for all road users, is a great ideal to strive for and while improvements have been made, we’re still falling behind:

The year 2015 marked the largest increase in traffic deaths since 1966 and preliminary estimates for the first half of 2016 show an alarming uptick in fatalities – an increase of about 10.4 percent as compared to the number of fatalities in the first half of 2015.

Los Angeles, San Jose, and San Francisco all have the unfortunate claim to being in the top ten most dangerous cities for cyclists in the USA, per National Highway Traffic Safety Administration 2015 data. sadly, and Bicycle Advocacy at @BIKELA pointedly calls this out as Zero Vision.

2017 Rankings of Bicycle Friendly States

2017 BICYCLE FRIENDLY STATE℠ RANKING

The Bicycle Friendly State ranking provides a ranking for all 50 states based on four public data sources and a Bicycle Friendly State survey that is answered by each state’s Department of Transportation and/or a statewide bicycle advocacy organization.

Very useful categories are tracked also so that states and people can learn from what other state’s are doing.

Like this exciting project in California’s own Santa Monica.

Or the progress of San Gabriel Valley for bicycling and walking – Love these Greenways!

The fact is, we can and are doing more.

But we aren’t getting it done fast enough, and we are falling behind.

America Is Now an Outlier on Driving Deaths
New York Times
November 19, 2017

As a result, this country has turned into a disturbing outlier. Our vehicle fatality rate is about 40 percent higher than Canada’s or Australia’s. The comparison with Slovenia is embarrassing. In 1990, its death rate was more than five times as high as ours. Today, the Slovenians have safer roads.

#VisionZero San Diego has big plans, big improvements are coming our way.

Thanks to our hardworking Bicycle, Walking, and Transportation Advocates like San Diego Bicycle Coalition, Bike San Diego, Safe Routes to School, don’t want to leave anyone off the list here! Changes for safer streets and healthy ways to getting around are happening.

If you need more to get excited about, this AARP article hits the spot, “10 Ways Bicycle-Friendly Streets Are Good for People Who Don’t Ride Bicycles

“One of the things we’ve found with bike infrastructure is that it makes streets safer for everyone, not just bicyclists,” explains Barbara McCann, director of Safety, Energy & Environment for the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT). “It reduces the frequency of crashes. It calms traffic, which makes streets less chaotic and safer for everyone.”

Truck Underride Crashes Cause Death & Injury Every Year – Preventable #VisionZero

Truck and trailer underride or side-under-ride crashes are extremely dangerous to car occupants, pedestrians, and cyclists. The NTSB actually called for this as well as pointed out the inadequate crash data reporting on truck crashes. Every year people are killed on our roads from these types of crashes which are preventable using side guards or rear guards which are strong enough to take the force of vehicles at highway speeds.

This NBC article from February 2017 states, “Side Underride Crashes Kill 200 People a Year. Will Congress Act?

The federal agency in charge of highway safety requires guards on the back of trucks, but not along the sides. And key lawmakers who have together received millions of dollars in campaign donations from the transportation industry haven’t pushed for it, despite a recommendation from the National Transportation Safety Board.

But we do not really know the number of incidents of crashes and hence deaths as no state actually tracks this data in our National Reporting System. Worse, the USA rear guards are not actually strong enough to prevent cars at even lower city speeds from going under trailers. Our crash reporting system data does not track these types of crashes well. To confuse things even more, Canada has stronger requirements for the rear guards on trailers and without tracking model numbers, we don’t have any idea what is actually happening and why.

Yet, cities like New York, Boston, Portland, and Seattle are taking steps with city fleets to put side guards on trucks because they know that these can help reduce preventable pedestrian and cyclists death and injuries. February 2017: SDOT installs truck safety sideguards + What would it take to get them on every truck?

Seattle’s Department of Transportation is retrofitting all department trucks to include sideguards designed to reduce harm to people walking and biking in the case of a collision.

Sideguards to be made mandatory for all trucks doing business in Boston

2015: New York City made side guards on trucks mandatory

In New York City, Trucks make up just 3.6 percent of vehicles on New York City streets, according to U.S. DOT, but are involved in 12.3 percent of pedestrian fatalities and 32 percent of bicyclist deaths.

Side guards on trucks and trailers in cities just make sense. Another cyclist Gets The Right Hook: It’s Time For Sideguards On Trucks In North America

Every time an accident like this happens, cyclists have the same question: Why aren’t side guards legally required on trucks in the City? Europe has them. The UK has them. As of January 1, 2011, even Brazil has them!

A right hook is a common cyclist crash type.

And the DOT has been working on testing and improved side guards and rear guards, just not many trucks are actually getting them. Protecting Pedestrians and Bicyclists, One Safer Truck at a Time

In the coming years, the simultaneous rapid growth of urban freight and walking and bicycling in the U.S. threatens to increase truck-involved casualties, which are already overrepresented relative to trucks’ share of vehicles on the road today.

Volpe’s research into both proven and new crash avoidance and mitigation technologies for trucks is shaping a new pillar of cities’ Vision Zero programs, as well as advancing U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx’s bicycle-pedestrian safety priority. One specific safety technology—side underride guards—further extends to the tantalizing potential co-benefit of fuel efficiency, implying attractive payback and a pathway to accelerated adoption.

2014: NTSB Issues Recommendations to Correct Safety Vulnerabilities Involving Tractor-Trailers

Collisions with the sides of tractor-trailers resulted in about 500 deaths each year and that many of these deaths involved side underride. Researchers also found that current trailer rear underride guard standards are outdated.

The NTSB in the same press release discusses the known blind spots in single unit trucks as well as tractor trailers which cause death and injury every year to pedestrians, cyclists, motorcyclists and vehicle occupants.

#VisionZero these are preventable deaths and injuries caused by bad design that we know about and know how to improve. We know that data collection inadequate which is fixable. We have some technology which can improve things quickly. We still aren’t trying to implement recommendations from the NTSB in 2014 which seems like willful ignorance.

Finally, the NTSB asked NHTSA to address the issue of data collection on trailers. When a tractor-trailer gets into an accident, police officers routinely record basic information about the truck-tractor component of the tractor-trailer, including the model year and vehicle identification number. However, information about the trailer component is usually missing from federal and state databases. Having this information could help with evaluation of safety standards and determine whether certain trailer designs and equipment should be altered to reduce injury risks to passenger vehicle occupants.

Cars and Bikes Share the Road

Good article from Ohio about Ohio bicycle laws for cars and bicyclists to better understand how to better share the road and be aware of each other. One important point that is emphasized is reminding drivers that bicycle riders are vulnerable road users, this includes the new law about leaving a passing buffer space around a cyclist and your vehicle.

Although these are Ohio bicycle laws, many of them are very similar to California, and many of them are just good common sense reminders about how we all can share the road safely, and get to where we are going without incident, stress, and hopefully with some fun along the way.

Breaking down Ohio’s bicycle laws

But, even though drivers and bicyclists follow many of the same rules on the road, both need to remain aware of the vulnerability of those on bikes, he said.
“If you pass me too close in your car or if you’re errant in that way, you can do serious human bodily damage,” Kuhn said. “We’re not driving a 4,000-pound cage with 10 airbags.”

U.S. Safety Agency Advocating Stronger Truck Rear-Impact Guards

U.S. Safety Agency Advocating Stronger Truck Rear-Impact Guards
Insurance Journal
December 15, 2015

The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is proposing that trucking companies be required to install stronger guards on their trailers to reduce deaths caused when cars rear-end tractor trailers. […]

Experts, police perform underride crash tests

Experts, police perform underride crash tests
3/27/15
ABC

[…] Crash experts and police from around the state gathered Friday to perform side underride crash tests […] NHTSA spokesperson Jose Ucles said they have not yet started evaluating the possibility of requiring side impact guards, but they could in the future. […]

Stronger Truck Underride Guards Proposed to Cut Rear-Impact Deaths

Stronger Truck Underride Guards Proposed to Cut Rear-Impact Deaths
Claims Journal
December 9, 2015

The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is proposing that trucking companies be required to install stronger guards on their trailers to reduce deaths caused when cars rear-end tractor trailers. […] The stronger guards will prevent between one and three serious injuries and one fatality a year, NHTSA said. […]