NEWS RELEASE: September 4, 2009
FROM: The Kansas Highway Patrol
CONTACT: Captain Daniel D. Meyer (785) 296-7189
Trucks Patrolling the State for Safety
TOPS program completes 2009 deployment
The Trucks on Patrol for Safety (TOPS) program conducted by Kansas Highway Patrol, and supported by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has completed its third consecutive year. The program has been traveling across the state since July. The program spent the past week in the Kansas City metro area. The TOPS program pairs companies and drivers that operate large trucks with the Patrol in an effort to reduce injuries and deaths related to large truck crashes on Kansas’ roadways.
"Too often, drivers see semi-trucks as merely an obstacle to pass quickly or cut-off, forgetting the dire, and fatal consequences that come with collisions. That's why the Highway Patrol, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, and the motor carrier industry are working together to reduce these accidents and promote safe driving around semi-trucks; and I'm grateful for their efforts," Kansas Governor Mark Parkinson said.
The TOPS program provides troopers an opportunity to ride with professional semi truck drivers. The troopers onboard the large trucks will have a front seat view to witness, document, and report violations to other troopers on patrol in the immediate area. The Patrol's Air Support Unit is also being utilized in support of TOPS. Each week, the violation data is being tabulated and posted on the Kansas Highway Patrol's Web site. Go to http://www.kansashighwaypatrol.org and look for TOPS in the "Hot Topics" box. Through the FMCSA grant-funded TOPS program, troopers enforce state laws and federal regulations in and around large trucks, as well as educate the motoring public of the dangers that exist around semis.
"It is an integral part of the Patrol's goals to reduce the number of collisions, injuries, and deaths on our state's roads. Many of the crashes that occur on Kansas highways are those that are preventable. We all need to assure that we are practicing courteous and defensive driving techniques when traveling around large trucks and commercial vehicles," Colonel Terry Maple, Superintendent of the Kansas Highway Patrol, said. "The TOPS program was implemented three years ago with this in mind-to help raise awareness of the extra time and room these large vehicles require."
The trucks, trailers, and drivers that the Patrol uses for the program are donated by the industry. The companies partnered with the Patrol for a week in a specific region of the state to make these resources available. In the Kansas City area this past week, the partnering company was a Kansas Motor Carriers Association (KMCA)-member company, who donated a driver and a trailer for the Patrol’s use.
"The Kansas Motor Carriers Association and their member companies have been vital in supporting the TOPS mission for the past three years. The Patrol thanks them for their support, and we look forward to continuing to foster our partnership, increasing safety on Kansas roads along the way," Maple said.
In 2008, large trucks were involved in 5.6 percent of all traffic crashes and 14.9 percent of all fatal crashes in Kansas. According to the Kansas Department of Transportation, there were 52 fatal collisions involving large trucks. The driver of the large truck had at least one contributing factor in 12 (or 25 percent) of these crashes. There were 3,702 crashes in 2008 involving heavy trucks, which equates to one crash every 2.37 hours. In those 3,702 crashes, 63 people were killed and another 1,146 were injured. This demonstrates the need to promote awareness about the safe operation of all vehicles around large trucks.
As with all law enforcement agencies, the Kansas Highway Patrol is committed to serving the public, increasing productivity, and promoting safety for all motorists. To help achieve these goals, the Patrol would like drivers to remember these safety tips while sharing the road with large trucks.
- Stay out of truck blind spots. Although every truck has side mirrors, the driver still has blind spots - areas directly behind and on both sides of the truck where the driver cannot see cars. Look at the truck; if you can't see the driver's side view mirrors, you are in a blind spot and the driver can't see you. If your car is beside a large truck, either drive on past or back off. If you are passing, try to drive your car on the left side, where the blind spot is smaller.
- Never follow a large truck too closely. Stay behind large trucks by at least one car length for every 10 miles per hour of speed. Providing extra distance allows you to see in front of the truck. If there is congested traffic or a crash ahead of you, you will see it in time to stop or safely steer your car away from the danger.
- Use extra caution when passing a large truck. After you pass a large truck, do not pull your car back into its traffic lane until you see its headlights in your rearview mirror. Leaving this extra distance gives the truck driver time to slow down or stop if something is happening on the highway ahead.
- Always remember that a loaded tractor-trailer or semi truck needs as much as 100 yards - the length of a football field - to come to a complete stop. No matter how crowded the highway, make sure to maintain this safe distance. If the truck driver ignores this margin of safety and follows your car too closely, do not take a chance. Move your car into another traffic lane.
- Always use your turn signal when changing lanes. Drivers around you need to know what you are doing so they can maintain a safe driving distance.
- Always use seatbelts and child safety seats when appropriate. This is your best defense against injury and death should you become involved in a motor vehicle crash.