RE: Oklahoma wreck that killed 10 people...
As you recall, the trucker, Donald Creed, 76, came upon a line of vehicles stopped for another accident.
Jerry quoted Capt. Scott Horton of the Oklahoma Highway Patrol as citing fatigue and heat exhaustion on the part of Creed as a possible contributing factor.
Horton said Creed began his shift that morning at 3 a.m. in Springfield, Mo., and was returning to Springfield when the accident occurred at 1 p.m.
We called the Oklahoma Highway Patrol and while it will eventually become part of the investigative record, Creed’s logbook is still part of the ongoing investigation and police aren’t saying anything about Creed’s activities in the days preceding the accident.
Based on the safety record of the company for which Creed drove, we suspect that Creed’s logbook will reveal nothing out of the ordinary during those days.
This is where I ask myself...
Is the "ordinary" safe enough for a 76-year-old driver?
There are two issues I'd like to point out,
First, at 58 I do not have the physical stamina I had at age 40,
Putting in 11 consecutive hours of work impacts me a lot differently now than at age 40.
Second there is the issue of physical condition.
We all know that as we age, our doctor suggests we undergo more frequent preventive testing, such as for prostate cancer for men, breast cancer for women and heart disease for both men and women, to name a few.
Should it be any different for truckers as they age?
Let’s look at another transportation-related sector, airline pilots.
The Federal Aviation Administration requires that prior to age 40, to pilot a commercial airliner, a person must get a new medical certificate every 12 months.
Once that person reaches 40, he or she must get a new medical certificate every six months.
For most truckers, getting a new certificate is required every two years.
There are exceptions, but it would be safe to say that every two years is the norm.
A commercial airline pilot might be responsible for 250 souls on board every time his or her plane takes off, but how many people died in the U.S. last year in commercial airline accidents and how many died in crashes involving commercial vehicles, albeit most of those are caused by four-wheelers?
Perhaps it is time for the Department of Transportation and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to rethink the rules for getting medical certificates.
That and encouraging on-board safety systems through financial incentives could go a long way toward increasing safety on our highways.
As you recall, the trucker, Donald Creed, 76, came upon a line of vehicles stopped for another accident.
Jerry quoted Capt. Scott Horton of the Oklahoma Highway Patrol as citing fatigue and heat exhaustion on the part of Creed as a possible contributing factor.
Horton said Creed began his shift that morning at 3 a.m. in Springfield, Mo., and was returning to Springfield when the accident occurred at 1 p.m.
We called the Oklahoma Highway Patrol and while it will eventually become part of the investigative record, Creed’s logbook is still part of the ongoing investigation and police aren’t saying anything about Creed’s activities in the days preceding the accident.
Based on the safety record of the company for which Creed drove, we suspect that Creed’s logbook will reveal nothing out of the ordinary during those days.
This is where I ask myself...
Is the "ordinary" safe enough for a 76-year-old driver?
There are two issues I'd like to point out,
First, at 58 I do not have the physical stamina I had at age 40,
Putting in 11 consecutive hours of work impacts me a lot differently now than at age 40.
Second there is the issue of physical condition.
We all know that as we age, our doctor suggests we undergo more frequent preventive testing, such as for prostate cancer for men, breast cancer for women and heart disease for both men and women, to name a few.
Should it be any different for truckers as they age?
Let’s look at another transportation-related sector, airline pilots.
The Federal Aviation Administration requires that prior to age 40, to pilot a commercial airliner, a person must get a new medical certificate every 12 months.
Once that person reaches 40, he or she must get a new medical certificate every six months.
For most truckers, getting a new certificate is required every two years.
There are exceptions, but it would be safe to say that every two years is the norm.
A commercial airline pilot might be responsible for 250 souls on board every time his or her plane takes off, but how many people died in the U.S. last year in commercial airline accidents and how many died in crashes involving commercial vehicles, albeit most of those are caused by four-wheelers?
Perhaps it is time for the Department of Transportation and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to rethink the rules for getting medical certificates.
That and encouraging on-board safety systems through financial incentives could go a long way toward increasing safety on our highways.
