TEXAS, USA — The point of these stories is usually to give y'all advice to keep you safe on the roads, as drivers. But there's a group of drivers that are always on roads in North Texas who we also need to keep safe!
A recent study from Simplex named the Lone Star State as one of the 10 most dangerous states for truck drivers.
Researchers took data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and looked specifically at the percentage of big rigs involved in fatal crashes in 2020. They then compared those numbers to the total number of crashes in each state.
Texas came in at number 10, with a little more than 11% of life-endangering crashes involving large trucks.
So which state is the most unsafe? Wyoming.
And the safest, who we can all learn some things from, the District of Columbia.
So what can we all do to lower that percentage while we're behind the wheel?
Here's some advice from TXDOT:
Never cut in front of a truck, and never follow them to closely. They need more time to stop than you do, because they weigh up to 80,000 pounds!
When you're passing, keep at least 4 car lengths between your car and the truck before getting back over.
Super important: Avoid the four large blind spots! If you can't see the driver in the truck's side mirror, they can't see you.
Hopefully the next time this study gets done here in Texas, we'll see those numbers drop -- but that can only happen if we all do our part, truck drivers included.
As always, if you have a traffic concern in your area, you can email us here.