A loaded truck in motion is the largest vehicle on US roads. Any moment of lack of attention from the truck driver can lead to a disaster. Now, imagine this giant on wheel hurtling down a slope out of control. This is a runaway truck and it is possibly the worst potential hazard on the roads of the Colorado mountains. Whether by distracted driving or failure of the truck brakes, a truck going down a slope can quickly gain speed up to the point when the driver cannot control or stop it. In view of the major disaster involving a runaway truck and ending with a fiery crash that claimed four lives, the team of personal injury lawyers at Firouzbakht Law Firm decided to give attention to this specific and deadly situation for all highway users. If you were hit and injured by a truck speeding out of control on Colorado Mountains corridors, we encourage you to contact us and let us evaluate and handle your case..
While driver error may be the primary cause of truck crashes, trucking companies are also responsible for their employees' actions and their failure to comply with highway safety rule. A runaway vehicle may also be a defective or poorly maintained one, which left the driver with no possibility of avoiding a catastrophic crash. Thus, most runaway truck incidents may be imputable to truck companies, which should ensure safety for truckers and for everyone else using the Colorado highways.
The Colorado Mountains are a national treasure of the United States, attracting visitors from other US states or from abroad. Unfortunately, the sloped roads crossing these majestic mountains are also used by semi-trucks carrying goods across the Colorado State.
A fully loaded 18-wheeler can weigh up to 80,000 pounds or 40 tons. As it starts going down a sloped road, the truck gains momentum and speed, if the commercial driver does not reduce speed to a safe level. Beyond a certain point, the brakes of the truck overheat, leading to brake failure. At this point, the heavy vehicle is speeding down way above the maximum speed limit and may easily crash into passenger cars, causing unspeakable harm to so many innocent people.
Driving commercial trucks along the Colorado Mountain passes, especially during the winter season, when the roads are snowy or icy poses a lot of challenges.. First of all, the driver should perform visual equipment checks on their vehicle, especially brake checks. Worn-out or defective brakes mean that the driver should not get behind the wheel and start driving, especially in mountainous locations.
On the road, truck drivers should comply with traffic regulations, especially with speed limit. To avoid a truck runaway incident, they have three possibilities:
A runaway truck ramp, also called a truck escape ramp, is a lane with a steep incline and paved with a bed of gravel or sand. The incline and the surface of the runaway ramp will absorb the kinetic energy of the speeding truck and allow it to come to a stop safely.
More importantly, it prevents the drivers from crashing their pickup trucks or 18-wheelers into passenger vehicles once they realize that they cannot control them. Thus, runaway truck ramps are safe locations for truckers to diver their vehicle in case of emergency.
There are several runaway ramps with arrester bed across Colorado State, along the highways most frequently used for heavy-truck traffic:
The Colorado Department of Transportation has taken steps to prevent road fatalities on the highway with heavy traffic. The most recent safety program, called "The Mountain Rules", was developed in partnership with the Colorado State Patrol, Colorado Motor Carriers Association, and driver alert providers PrePass Safety Alliance and Drivewyze.
The program combines the educational effort towards truckers and trucking company with improved signage of emergency escape ramps as well as dynamic alerts that drivers can receive if they are subscribed to the driver alert providers' mobile application. The program will also improve the short-term parking area for pickup truck and other types of large commercial vehicles at the exit of Genesee Park, which is located right before a series of dangerous curves.
By combining driver safety alerts, safe mountain driving training programs and a comprehensive roadside inspection program, the Colorado Department of Transportation hopes to make all the highways and roads in the state safer for everyone.
Notwithstanding the authorities' efforts to create additional alerts for drivers, our personal injury law firm wants to give everyone a consistent reminder that most vehicular homicide accidents and collisions resulting in bodily injury are caused by negligence accidents.
In certain situations, it is the driver's sole negligence. A DUI or speeding driver, or a driver tailgating other cars in road rage will probably not pay attention to the messages sent by the alert program and use the gravel-covered off-ramp.
On the other hand, a trucking company that puts people without consistent driving experience behind the wheel of a 40-ton vehicle, is also liable for their failure to avoid a crash.
Also, a maintenance provider that did not perform brake check inspections according to the schedule, may also be held liable in a personal injury claim or personal injury lawsuit.
The only way of securing your legal rights is by hiring an experienced personal injury lawyer to investigate the crash, identify the liable parties, establish their fault and negotiate your fair settlement.
It is important to remember that the Colorado State uses the comparative negligence principle in determining who may recover damages in a personal injury case. Thus, even if you believe you were somehow at fault for the accident, you are still eligible to collect financial compensation if you were less than 51% responsible.
Fighting your own battle against big trucking companies is almost impossible if you were severely injured in a runaway truck accident. You only have two years since the date of the crash to decide to file a personal injury lawsuit (the statute of limitations in Colorado). Unfortunately, you may have to spend many months in hospital until you reach maximum medical improvement and can be discharged at home.
Even so, you may suffer from permanent injuries or disability, preventing you from fulfilling all the legal procedures required in such a case. Moreover, the trucking company and their insurance providers will try to minimize your settlement amount and will use stalling tactics to prevent you from filing a lawsuit.
An experienced personal injury lawyer at Firouzbakht Law Firm will not let this happen to you. We know how to negotiate with big truck companies and when to cease negotiations and instruct you to take them to court instead. Also, we won't charge you any fees until you win your fair compensation, so you don't have to worry about whether you can afford an attorney. Call us now for a free case review: (720) 547-2211!
Meta description: Find out why runaway trucks are so dangerous in the Colorado Mountains and why you should always hire a personal injury attorney if you were hurt in such a terrible accident.
