Illinois has incredibly busy roadways and commercial truck drivers make up a fair portion of the driving population (especially around IL’s major cities). For this reason, drivers need to understand how to drive (and interact with) truck drivers safely. To help out, here are ten essential safety tips for Illinois truck drivers:
1. Know Your Rights
Even if you do your best to stay safe at all times, accidents can and will happen. Whether you’re a commercial truck driver who’s been harmed by a reckless driver, or a pedestrian driver who’s been harmed by a reckless truck driver, you deserve to get proper legal representation. An IL truck accident lawyer in your area can help you seek the restitution and payout you deserve post-accident.
2. Your Blind Spots are Key
Few things are as dangerous as lacking a clear view of your “blind spots.” When people are in a large truck’s blind spot, they put everyone around them on the road, including the truck driver, in grave danger. Many of the worst collisions involving big trucks begin when someone foolishly stays in their blind spots for an unreasonable amount of time. However, large trucks must stay out of other vehicles’ blind spots as well.
3. Take Caution When Making a Wide Turn
Big trucks need a lot of space and attention when making a wide turn. As a truck driver, you should be completely aware of how much time you have to make a turn, and how other vehicles around you are behaving as you attempt a turn. Doing so will help you make the turn in a more successful, safe fashion. Especially if you’re on a busy IL street, you’ll need to take extra precautions.
4. Give Yourself Space
Speaking of space, both large truck drivers and pedestrian vehicles must give each other plenty of space on the road. When you overcrowd other drivers or ride their tails, you’re creating a hostile roadway environment where everyone will have less time to react in dangerous situations. This type of behavior will lead to more hectic, and even deadly, wrecks if we do not take the time to take sharing the road seriously.
5. Avoid Distractions
Did you know that many actions happen within a matter of seconds? To help keep roadways safer, everyone on the road needs to put down their phones and snacks, and pay attention. Distracted driving has become one of the biggest killers on America’s roadways, after all. Given how much more difficult a large truck can be to control, professional truck drivers have to be extra aware of the roadways they’re navigating. Getting enough sleep each day before hitting the road is crucial as well.
6. Never Drive Under the Influence
While it may seem like a no-brainer, many people still make the horrible choice to get behind the wheel while under the influence. For professional truck drivers, this risky behavior can become much deadlier, and much faster, as they are driving much heavier, more unwieldy vehicles. A sudden lack of control of such a vehicle can lead to disastrous consequences that can ruin (or end) lives.
7. Set Up Your GPS Before Starting Your Engine
Sudden traffic situations are not only dangerous for large trucks, but for commercial truck drivers, it can make the work day suddenly much longer. To help avoid traffic when at all possible, you should be putting your directions in the GPS before you even start your engine. Having your GPS properly set up and hands-free is crucial for driving in a safe, concentrated manner as well.
8. Respect Work Zone Safety
As a professional truck driver, you can understand how tense and dangerous road-related work can be. For this reason, take extra time to respect the needs of any work zone workers who are on the roadways. Doing so can save lives, and will help make America’s workforce much, much safer in 2023 (and beyond).
9. Use Your Signals at All Times
It’s incredibly annoying (and dangerous) when motorists fail to use turn signals. This makes their movements sudden and unpredictable for everyone else on the road and can lead to chain reactions that result in destructive accidents. For truck drivers, failing to signal their moves to other drivers is even more likely to lead to disastrous results. So do everyone a favor, and always use your turn signals (no matter what or where you’re driving).
10. Maintaining Your Vehicle is Essential
An improperly maintained large truck can cause major safety issues. After all, if your brakes, wheels, or engine suddenly begins malfunctioning at high speeds, it can be difficult to regain control of your truck. For this reason, you should do frequent and efficient maintenance and safety checks to ensure your truck is road-ready. Additionally, fixing a problem early on can save you a ton on maintenance costs.
The Editorial Team at Healthcare Business Today is made up of skilled healthcare writers and experts, led by our managing editor, Daniel Casciato, who has over 25 years of experience in healthcare writing. Since 1998, we have produced compelling and informative content for numerous publications, establishing ourselves as a trusted resource for health and wellness information. We offer readers access to fresh health, medicine, science, and technology developments and the latest in patient news, emphasizing how these developments affect our lives.
