Two trucks in RT Services’ Elbert County trash hauling fleet were taken off the road last month after Elbert County Sheriff’s Office deputies discovered the trucks were in violation of many safety standards. According to deputy reports the trucks exhibited brake and light malfunctions, insufficient tire tread, disconnected air tanks and other potentially hazardous issues. Reportedly, the vehicles had not been inspected since 2008.
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Companies that sell second hand retread tires often say that their products are no more prone to blowouts than new tires, and safety studies on the subject seem to support this claim, according to one automotive expert’s independent research. While retread tires were once a common replacement option for passenger vehicle owners, an influx of inexpensive tires imported into the United States has made new tires less expensive, according to retread tire distributors, and nearly eliminated the market for retread passenger vehicle tires. One auto part retailer reported not selling a retread passenger vehicle tire for more than a decade. Retread tires are now used almost exclusively by commercial vehicles – from tractor trailers to jet planes, according to retread industry representatives. Approximately four in five aircraft tires currently in service are retreads, according to industry estimates. The safety statistics touted by the retread industry were supported by tire manufacturers and auto associations as well.
Tire retreading is a $3 billion industry according to industry representatives, and approximately 730 tire retreading facilities are currently operating in the United States.
One common reason for the mistaken idea that retreads are less durable than new tires, according to the auto expert’s research, is the seemingly disproportionate amount of tractor trailer tire debris found on U.S. roadways, which some drivers say is a road hazard and accident risk. Trucks, with many more tires than passenger vehicles, tend to travel larger distances for longer amounts of time than other vehicles and are therefore more prone to blow outs, no matter what type of tires they have.
According to a safety study commissioned by the United States National Highway Transportation Safety Administration in 2008, compared the amount of road debris left on highways by damaged retread tires to the amount left by new tires and found no appreciable difference between the two. Overall, commercial truck collisions found to be caused by damaged truck tires whether retreads or new tires amount to less than one percent of all auto accidents, according to National Highway Transportation Safety Administration statistics.
An estimated 8 of every ten tires are recycled, according to statistics reported by the tire industry, and many of these tires become retreads. While manufacturing a new truck tire requires 22 gallons of oil, while retreading a used tire requires about 7 gallons, according to retread industry representatives. The retread process also uses less rubber and energy than producing a new tire. Every year, approximately 60 million tires are improperly discarded in landfills where they pose toxic fire hazards.
With police reports showing that driver-related factors account for at least one third of fatal accidents involving truck drivers in 2010, and with more states adopting laws against distracted driving, some fleet managers are looking for ways to enforce good driving behavior. Rosco’s Dual Vision system has been designed with this purpose in mind. The safety system records, and monitors employees’ driving habits and provides instant driver feedback.
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Rosco’s Dual-Vision[TM] Modifies Driver Behavior to Reduce Distracted Driving …
The 2011 Delta 210 and 212 GN flatbed trucks are being recalled voluntarily in compliance with a request issued by the United States National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, due to complications caused by the fact that the Dexter Axle brand electric brake actuator pump may not have been properly heat treated during the manufacturing process. As a result this component may wear down prematurely and cease functioning unexpectedly, potentially while the vehicle is in motion, increasing the likelihood that the vehicle will become involved in a traffic collision, possibly resulting in serious injury or death. These potentially defective auto components will be replaced by licensed technicians at authorized Dexter dealerships free of charge, according to the official vehicle recall notice posted on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s website. This recall, designated by NHSTA campaign identification number 12V276000, is an expansion of a larger ongoing recall campaign, designated by NHTSA action number EQ12003, that affects trailers of various models and brand names that have been equipped with potentially defective Dexter Axle brand electric hydraulic brake actuator pumps. Because these Dexter Axle brand electric hydraulic brake actuator pumps serve as the power supplies for these trailer braking systems, the braking system may completely cease to function if the brake actuator pump fails. More information regarding this recall can be obtained by contacting Dexter Axle’s customer service department or the NHSTA vehicle safety hotline.
A collision earlier this week injured one individual and killed another.
The incident took place shortly after 1 o’clock in the afternoon on Monday in the city of Oroville. A Hyundai Tiburon was traveling east along Forbestown Road while the road was slick. When the vehicle approached the area around Lumpkin Road, it came upon a curve that veers toward the right. It was at this point that the driver of the vehicle reportedly lost control, according to the California Highway Patrol. Because of the loss of control, the car found itself in the way of a Brower’s Tow Service truck, which then collided with the Tiburon on the driver’s side.
The driver of the tow truck sustained injuries that were described as minor, and that individual reportedly said he did not want to be taken to a hospital. The people in the other vehicle, though, suffered serious injuries. The driver of the Tiburon was transported via helicopter to Chico’s Enloe Medical Center, where she succumbed to her injuries. The other individual in the automobile also incurred major injuries as a result of the crash. That person was also taken to Enloe, and reports state that they are are in stable but critical condition.
An investigation into the crash has been launched.
A single-vehicle crash left the occupants of the automobile with a variety of injuries.
The incident took place in Colusa County at around 10:30 at night on Tuesday. A Dodge Ram pickup truck was driving along the westbound side of Maxwell-Colusa Road at around 70 miles per hour. When it approached the area of west of Lauren Road, the truck drifted off the north side of the street. To stave off disaster, the driver of the pickup reportedly yanked the wheel too far to the other side. This caused the truck to veer across the lanes of the road and flip over south of the pavement.
The vehicle came to a rest near Lauren Road. As a result of the accident, the driver of the truck was thrust from the vehicle at some point during its journey. That individual suffered injuries that the California Highway Patrol said were major. He was thus taken to Enloe Medical Center in Chico by way of a helicopter to receive treatment for the damage he sustained.
Two other persons were inside the truck at the time of the crash as well. Those people incurred injuries that were described as minor. As such, they reportedly did not require immediate treatment at a hospital.
Trucking companies should examine a decade’s worth of driving records before hiring any new driver, the National Transportation Safety Board recommended recently. The suggestion to increase the scope of driving history required from prospective commercial truck drivers to ten years from the three years of records currently required, which the National Transportation Safety Board said is an insufficient length of time to analyze before making a knowledgeable hiring decision, came after the board announced the results of its investigation into the cause of a bus crash that killed 15 people in New York City in March of 2011. The three years of driving history trucking companies are required to review before hiring a new driver do not provide enough information to potential employers regarding the driver’s safety practices behind the wheel. The bus that killed 15 people in New York City was violating the posted speed limit in a 50 mile per hour zone. For this reason, the National Transportation Safety Board also advised that all newly manufactured heavy trucks be equipped with devices that limit their top speed to the legal speed limits. The United States National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is currently considering including this requirement in federal highway safety regulations. The device, were it installed on the bus involved in the fatal New York City accident, would not have prevented the incident however. These devices must be set to one top speed for highway travel, so the bus could’ve continued to violate the speed limit in a 50 mile per hour zone.
The driver of a truck that was allegedly stolen sustained fatal injuries as a result of a single-vehicle collision.
The alleged stealing of the truck took place at some point before 5:30 in the afternoon on Tuesday in Delano. Two gardeners had reportedly parked their Ford Ranger, which had a trailer loaded up with equipment, near a local church at the intersection of Dover Place and 3rd Avenue. When they went to the truck to grab some tools, they found that it was gone.
According to the California Highway Patrol, the vehicle was taken by a teenager. The vehicle was reportedly traveling along the northbound side of Highway 99. When it reached the Cecil Avenue overpass, the vehicle apparently struck a number of structures as the driver lost control for unknown reasons. The truck hit a concrete barrier and then careened toward the right, crashing directly into a guard rail, then a call box, then a wooden post, and finally a concrete pillar that brought the vehicle to a halt.
The driver of the stolen vehicle sustained injuries and was originally transported to Delano Regional Medical Center. An air ambulance then took the individual to Kern Medical Center, and it was at that location that the driver succumbed to his injuries and died.
A three vehicle crash in Clearlake ended with a bystander in the area sustaining fatal injuries.
The incident took place at around 2:30 in the afternoon on Tuesday. An International tow truck was traveling north along Highway 53 at around 45 or 55 miles per hour, according to the California Highway Patrol. When the vehicle reached the intersection of Polk Avenue, it came upon a Lexus sedan waiting to turn left onto that cross street. The flatbed tow truck reportedly began to apply the brakes in order to stop, but the attempt to do so apparently came too late.
The driver swerved the tow truck to the right, but its left side collided with the back right of the Lexus. The vehicle continued onward, drifting over onto the shoulder of the road. In its path, unfortunately, was a parked Ford Ranger and an individual doing some sort of landscaping in the area. The tow truck crashed into the pedestrian, and the vehicle’s back portion came into contact with the out of control Ranger.
An air ambulance arrived to take the pedestrian to nearby Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital, but according to the Clearlake Police, he died while en route. The tow truck’s driver was uninjured, but the driver of the Lexus, which sustained minor damage, had to be taken to St. Helena Hospital Clearlake to receive treatment for injuries that were described as minor.
Hemet was the site of a pedestrian accident that sent nine people, including eight teenagers, to the hospital with injuries that varied in severity.
The incident took place just outside of Hemet High School after classes had dismissed for the day. It was the last day for seniors to participate in classes, and other students only had two days left to go. According to witnesses, a Ford Ranger that had reportedly been modified to be used for off-roading purposes looked to be turning into the school’s parking lot, as it was in a right turn only lane. Instead of turning, though, the vehicle allegedly blasted through a red light and continued forward into the intersection.
According to the California Highway Patrol, the vehicle careened into a crosswalk being used by around 30 people. The Ranger crashed directly into these pedestrians. A total of nine individuals were struck in some manner, all but one of them students at the school. Three of those students sustained critical injuries, with the other six incurring minor damage to their person. Everyone who was hit had to be transported to area hospitals.
The CHP has stated that the driver of the vehicle got out to assist those persons who were struck. Authorities will be conducting an investigation into the incident. Cameras positioned around the school apparently captured video of the accident, and the school’s principal said that police officials were reviewing this footage.
