Based on studies conducted last year, the National Transportation Safety Board has sent seven recommendations to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration "to improve the safety of tractor-trailers." The suggestions range from changing actual physical components on tractor-trailers, like adding protection along the sides of trailers to keep cars from going under them, to recording VIN information on trailers - which isn't currently collected - in accident reports.
The NTSB research revealed that more than half the time, truckers who hit pedestrians after pulling away from a stoplight weren't aware they had done so until other motorists or bystanders told them. When it comes to "underride events" - when a vehicle goes under the trailer - the NTSB said many of the 500 deaths caused by such incidents come from collisions with the sides of trailers, and reaffirmed the assessment by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety that rear trailer guard regulations aren't up to scratch.
The full list of recommendations also believes the NHTSA should mandate blind-spot reduction systems. NHTSA hasn't responded to points laid out, but it already does a lot of research in heavy truck safety, such as the recently concluded five-year study on Integrated Vehicle-Based Safety Systems.
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