Reasons Why You Should Avoid Driving Alongside a Truck

file photo by Boyd Loving

Driving is often the most entertaining thing you get to do throughout your day. Well, it’s not exactly entertaining, but rather relaxing. You get to take your mind off things while in your car for a drive, with nothing ahead but the open road. Unfortunately, that delightful experience can often end in tragedy if you are not careful while driving. True, accidents sometimes happen, even if you are very careful, because someone else was negligent. However, people’s own behavior is often the reason behind many accidents. 

One of the most reckless behaviors is driving alongside a truck, which can be both disastrous and dangerous. Here’s why you should never do that.

The Truck Can Be Loaded 

Trucks on their own are dangerous and they pose a threat to nearby drivers, but when they have loads on them, the risks are even bigger. They move anything from iron pipes to cement or even manure, and driving next to one of those can be quite dangerous because you never really know what would happen. What if the truck driver takes a speed bump too quickly and you’re next to them? Whatever they’re moving can easily slip and fall on your car, jeopardizing your life if not killing you instantly. Even a rock might cause enough turbulence to unhook some of the truck’s load. Even if it was something as lightweight as manure or sand, it’d be very dangerous. If that falls on your windshield, it will impair your vision. Needless to say, driving without seeing the road up ahead will not end well for anyone.

Tire Blowouts

Unfortunately, truck tire blowouts are very common. Those vehicles are on the roads for long hours every day, and they often carry significantly heavier loads. Tires wear out, and they could blow out on the road, which is catastrophic. Also, truck drivers move at very high speeds, contrary to traffic laws for vehicles of such immense weight. Moreover, some companies don’t really care about the maintenance of those vehicles as long as they are running. As a result, hundreds of truck-related incidents are because of tire blowouts on the road, according to stats. If you happen to be next to a truck driving when it has a tire blowout, the noise alone will scare you and drive you into another car in most cases. 

This is if you’re lucky. If you managed to maintain your composure and keep driving, you’d have a huge truck with a blown-out tire next to you, and the driver will most likely try to keep it from swerving, but it would most likely still crash into you. Needless to say, a truck that size crashing into an SUV almost always results in fatalities or serious injuries. So, you have to play it safe and never drive alongside a truck.

Truckers Are Seriously Overworked 

Truckers are some of the most overworked people in the country. Their sleep schedules are anything but consistent, and they often drive completely exhausted. This is obviously a recipe for disaster and often results in accidents. Many drivers even use drugs or other stimulants to stay awake, especially in a place like Dallas, which as explained by Dallas truck accident lawyers, can cause serious injuries and fatalities. In cases like these, you have to sue for compensation because you suffered emotional and physical damage as a result of the driver’s negligent behavior and the companies who let things get this far.

Ideally, you shouldn’t let things get to that point, and the way to do that is by avoiding driving alongside a truck. The driver has most likely been on the road for days and they are probably quite exhausted. They could easily lose control and swerve into your car, destroying it with you in it. Truckers aren’t necessarily bad people, but their job just demands and draining and some can only cope by taking drugs to stay active. This obviously isn’t your problem, but you should play it safe and avoid driving next to one.

Other Drivers Are Reckless 

It is not just truck drivers that you need to be wary of on the road. Other car drivers are often pretty bad, especially when it comes to driving past trucks. It happens quite often that a driver gets stuck behind another car that wasn’t fast enough to go past a truck, and if you’re in that car, you’re in trouble. If the truck driver has to change lanes all of a sudden to avoid an accident, they’d be crashing right into your car. This is why you can’t drive alongside one at any time. If you need to move past a truck, do it as fast as possible and never linger there. One more problem that happens frequently on the road is when drivers try to pass between two trucks, not just one! Needless to say, this is madness and it could be fatal. Squeezing your car between trucks is quite dangerous, and if either of them drifts for a second, you will crash into the other.

Pollution 

Trucks are an unbelievable source of pollution, and it is always a good idea to avoid them on the road. It is not just their exhaust emissions, which are much more than the average vehicle and are quite bad for your health. It is also the noise level that comes out of those trucks. The engines roar and the honk of the car itself is louder than anything else you’ll hear on the road. Such loud noises can actually scare you on the road if you’re driving next to a truck, causing you to suddenly swerve and crash your car. 

In short, driving alongside a truck is bad for you, and the risks are too many to ignore. They are accident prone, much more so than the average vehicle, and you don’t know what kind of person is driving them. Are they responsible? Are they even awake right now –– yes, some drivers fall asleep while driving out of exhaustion. So do yourself a favor and don’t wait to find the answers to those questions. If there is a truck on the road, wait for your window and drive past it, quickly, or fall back and drive behind it at a safe distance.