Tracy Morgan crash sparks another debate over tired truckers

Filed under:

Days before Morgan’s accident, the Senate approved legislation that would undo rules that mandated certain rest periods for truck drivers.

In the wee hours of Saturday morning, a sleep-deprived Walmart truck driver didn’t see that traffic ahead in the northbound lanes of the New Jersey Turnpike had slowed down.

By the time he reacted, it was too late. One person was killed and four more were injured, including comic Tracy Morgan, in the six-vehicle crash that followed. Authorities said Monday the driver of the truck, Kevin Roper, 35, hadn’t slept for 24 hours at the time of the accident.

Daphne Izer has heard this story before.

On October 10, 1993, a Walmart truck driver fell asleep behind the wheel and ran over a car containing her son, Jeff, and four of his friends. Jeff Izer and three others died. In her grief, she founded Parents Against Tired Truckers, an organization that lobbies lawmakers on transportation safety issues. She said Monday that not only are such crashes common, but they’re poised to grow in number and severity.

Days before Morgan’s accident thrust trucking safety into the news, the Senate Appropriations Committee approved legislation that would undo rules that only went into effect last year that mandated certain rest periods for truck drivers. Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) added an amendment to the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development bill that would suspend a regulation that truck drivers rest for 34 consecutive hours, including two nights from 1:00 AM to 5:00 AM, before driving again.

Continue reading Tracy Morgan crash sparks another debate over tired truckers

Tracy Morgan crash sparks another debate over tired truckers originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 09 Jun 2014 18:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments

from Autoblog http://ift.tt/1kZ4Ysj
via IFTTT