Truck Only Lanes Proposed on I-70
The Sierra Club is questioning safety benefits of proposed truck only lanes on Interstate 70. The Missouri Department of Transportation plans to add four lanes to I-70 and restrict tractor-trailer travel to the interior lane in each direction. Missouri would be part of a proposed 800 mile corridor of truck only lanes across four states.
Missouri reviewed several options to ease traffic flow on the 60 year old highway. Eventually MoDOT decided truck only lanes were the best option. Trucks were involved in more than 4,000 crashes on I-70 between 2002 and 2008.
The Sierra Club claims that trucks will still cross over the regular lanes to exit the highway. As the trucks move into regular lanes to exit, cars could be in the trucks blind spots and semi-truck accidents may occur. The $4.1 billion dollar plan would include slip ramps for trucks to exit from the interior lanes.
Due to size disparities and the basic laws of physics, any collision between a tractor-trailer and a passenger car is likely to result in serious injuries and significant property damage. Truckers and trucking companies are required by law to follow state and federal trucking regulations. When these regulations are overlooked, innocent people can be injured. Many tractor-trailer accidents are caused by driver fatigue, excessive speed, fraudulent log books, negligent truck maintenance, unbalanced loads, and negligent hiring of truck drivers. Anyone injured in a tractor-trailer collision should contact an experienced Missouri injury lawyer as soon as possible.
