Anyone who drives a car understands the notion of a blind spot, which involves areas where a driver cannot use a mirror to see that are adjacent to one’s vehicle. Tractor-trailers like smaller passenger vehicles also have blind spots, but these areas are massive in comparison of passenger vehicles. When a motorist is driving in the vicinity of a tractor-trailer, a driver should be aware of the location of these blind spots and avoid driving in these unsafe locations around a big-rig. These blind spots are the locations around a tractor-trailer that are most likely to be involved in a collision with another vehicle.
Tractor-trailers have large blind spots located on either side of the rig that extend from behind the cab to 20-40 feet back on the trailer. Tractor-trailers also have these blind spots, which are commonly called “no zones”, immediately behind a tractor-trailer. No zones in the rear of a tractor-trailer that may extend up to two hundred feet behind the vehicle. Trucks may also have a no zone immediately in front of the cab of the tractor-trailer.
These large no zones mean that motorists must be extra vigilant when driving in close proximity to a tractor-trailer. Drivers of passenger vehicles should try to completely avoid no zones by avoiding the following driving practices:
- Tailgating a tractor-trailer
- Driving in the adjacent lane of traffic next to the trailer for an extended distance
- Avoid passing a tractor-trailer and then immediately cutting over in front of the big-rig
- Drivers should be extremely careful about no zones on the right side of rigs which are larger
Driver fatigue and carelessness can be more dangerous when they impact a commercial driver in a tractor-trailer because visibility if so limited. While there are sensor systems that now exist which can warn drivers of tractor-trailers of pending collisions with vehicles in their no zones, many tractor-trailers do not yet have this technology installed on their vehicle.
This lack of visibility associated with tractor-trailers is even more problematic because of the relative lack of maneuverability associated with commercial trucks. While the average passenger vehicle traveling at 55 mph may take 265 feet to stop, a tractor-trailer may take 313 feet. If you are traveling in the no zone immediately in front of a commercial truck, the driver must be able to see you and have time to respond if you must come to an abrupt stop. This is why it is advisable to allow for larger distances between a passenger vehicle and commercial truck and avoid traveling in tractor-trailer blind spots.
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If you are involved in a San Francisco truck accident you may suffer serious injury, particularly if your seatbelt fails or some other product defect contributes to your collision. If you or someone you love has been injured or a loved one has died in a San Francisco car accident, you should contact us and speak with an experienced San Francisco truck accident attorney as soon as possible because critical deadlines apply. Our San Francisco trucking accident attorneys invite you to contact The Law Office of Ian Zimmerman for your free initial consultation. We are open 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., speak Cantonese and Mandarin Chinese, and are available for weekend, evening, home and hospital meetings and visits. We also offer free initial consultations and work exclusively on a contingency fee basis so that you pay nothing if we don’t win your case.