Unlawful Truck Drivers Cause Accidents

We have all seen them whizzing past us on the interstate disregarding the speed limit, weaving in and out of traffic. Truck drivers who disregard the laws of the road and commercial freight hauling are everywhere and they are a safety hazard to the rest of us on the road. Thankfully, the federal government has recently stepped in to put a stop to these unlawful truckers.

The mandatory trucking regulations go unheeded by these types of truck drivers. They are oblivious to the fact that the regulations are in place to decrease the amount of truck accidents on the highways and interstates. When caught disobeying the laws, drivers can be taken off the road for a specified amount of time. However, many simply go back out under a different company or name. The new law from the federal government proposes that persistent truck driving law breakers not only be taken off the road permanently but also have their trucking licenses permanently revoked.

According to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, a small number of truckers each year display this illegal behavior, trying to camouflage noncompliance or avoid compliance. Many will often submit new applications in other names to get back on the road. 

These new proposed laws will not only punish the drivers but also the carrier authority. It can also be used to prosecute employees of various agencies who look the other way or ignore the breaking of road and trucking rules. They could be contractors, employees and/or consultants, essentially anyone who knows about it and doesn’t report it.

This proposed punishment is serious. It can potentially take the livelihood of the offenders. Because of the seriousness of the punishment it is only to be used in cases of repeat and chronic law breakers. Determination will be made by considering the amount of violations on the driver’s record, the safety risk of the violation and the effect the violation on the driver’s safety record.

As a whole, the trucking industry takes safety extremely serious. Sadly, there will always be those drivers who feel above the law and will repeatedly push the rules to the breaking point. Trucking companies do their best to keep these types of truckers off the road but there will always be those who fly under the radar.

The law also entails a list of over a dozen requirements to carriers. Some are designed to fish out the carriers who have drivers with sketchy safety records who have jumped from one company to another to avoid compliance. It is the hope of the federal government that putting tougher requirements on carriers will decrease the number of unsafe drivers.

The new law is meant to help out the trucking companies and to do everything possible to ensure the safety of all motorists on the road by imposing serious sentences to negligent truck drivers. Would-be rule breakers will be able to witness these harsh punishments and think twice before trying it themselves.