The national Highway transportation safety administration announced recently that stability control systems could prevent truck rollover accidents and save multiple lives every year.
The technology in effect can override the truck driver and slowed the vehicle when the system senses that the truck drivers going too fast. The University of Michigan conducted testing and the conclusion was that almost 4400 injuries annually could be prevented.
According to the NHTSA, many truck drivers do not have any indication that they are going to roll over immediately before the accident. Particularly at risk are large trucks that are heavier in the cargo area. Tanker trucks carrying heavy liquid are the most likely candidates for a rollover accident.
The study found that over 50% of tanker truck rollovers involves taking a curve at his speed faster than the truck can allow. The new system is designed to prevent such accidents.
The stability control systems work by using sensors that tell an onboard computer when weight is shifting or about to shift. The computers then apply braking too slow the truck down and avoid the rollover accident.
According to industry sources trucking companies have not accepted the new technology or at least have been slow to adopt the system. It is likely that until such systems are required many truck companies will not go to the expense of implementing the new technology.
Greg Baumgartner is a Houston truck accident attorney and the founder of the Baumgartner law firm a preeminent truck accident law firm based in Houston and handling wrongful death cases and truck accident cases throughout the state of Texas.
