Santa Barbara Citizens Want to Ban Semis on Local Highway
Semi trucks can do some heavy damage while on the roads, and oftentimes, communities will go to great lengths to ensure that their local streets don’t become thoroughfares for trucks looking to shave some time off of their commute.
Such is the case in Santa Barbara, where local officials are seeking to encourage trucks to use Highway 101 rather than the more scenic Highway 154. In 2010, a big-rig carrying a load of gravel suffered brake problems and crashed into a Santa Barbara home at the highway’s base. A family of three was killed due to the crash.
As a result, an assemblyman introduced a state bill to ban trucks from the area, but the bill ultimately failed because the highway’s accident statistics didn’t support an all-out ban. Now, though, an attempt is being made to draft a resolution that will seek to improve safety along the route. It will be presented to the state legislature.
The increased traffic around the route is a result of the expanded use of Global Positioning System navigation devices, according to the California Highway Patrol.
As a Burlingame car accident attorney, I know how certain accidents can impact a community. That said, it’s often difficult to regulate the flow of traffic once a route has already been established. Instead, it appears to me, a car accident attorney in Burlingame, that Santa Barbara officials are on the right track, increasing safety measures in an effort to lessen the number of potential victims.
