Technology’s role on reducing Ohio commercial vehicle accidents

American highways, including those here in Ohio, are heavily used by commercial vehicles. Such vehicles may include coach buses, motor coaches, common carriers and commercial trucks. Because of these vehicles’ size and weight, the possibility of people getting injured or dying in commercial vehicle accidents remains high. However, officials and agencies that address commercial vehicle safety are doing their best to reduce the risks and numbers of those crashes through regulations and technology advancement.

In fact, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) is continuing its efforts to maintain commercial vehicle safety through the use of technology. According to recent sources, the FMCSA believes that technological advancements can provide progress in commercial vehicle safety. These technologies may assist the agency and other safety officials in predicting and preventing commercial vehicles accidents that may be able to decrease injury and fatality rates.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has encouraged the agency to deploy technological advancements in safety to both personal and commercial vehicles. The NTSB, together with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), has established a list of vehicle innovations that can save drivers and others from the damages caused by commercial vehicle crashes.

Referred to as the annual “NTSB Most Wanted List,” these innovations include tire pressure monitoring systems, speed limiters and an electronic brake stroke monitoring system. These three can regulate the overall performance of the vehicle, as well its susceptibility to a crash. The list also included the enhanced anti-lock braking system, lane departure warning systems and vehicle stability systems that may help a driver recognize the safety issues of a commercial vehicle. Collision warning systems, electronic logging devices and video-based driver performance systems are included as well.

Adopting these kinds of technologies can really make a difference to the number of fatalities and injuries caused by commercial vehicle accidents. An FMCSA 2011 statistic revealed that commercial motor vehicles were involved in almost 130,000 collisions, which led to more than 80,000 injuries and 4,000 fatalities.

Source: CVSA.org, “Preventing and Mitigating Commercial Motor Vehicle Crashes with Technology,” accessed on March 19, 2015