Truck Drivers Using More Drugs Behind the Wheel

July 07, 2012 (Press-News.org) We all trust airplane pilots, semi-truck drivers, subway operators and ship crews to be hyper-vigilant while flying, driving or sailing. To ensure their safety and ours, these "safety-sensitive workers" are federally required to submit to random drug and alcohol tests. The goal is to keep them sober and alert, while keeping everyone else around them alive.

Unfortunately, a new study shows an increase in illegal drug use among these workers, putting the rest of us in danger for truck accidents and other serious crashes.

Drug Use Up

Based on a review of 1.6 million test results, data showed a disturbing 33 percent jump in cocaine use among safety-sensitive workers in 2011. This figure is especially alarming considering the mere eight-percent increase in cocaine use in the general workforce. From 2010 to 2011, amphetamine use among safety-sensitive workers went up 26 percent compared to a 17 percent uptick in the general workforce. Perhaps the one positive note is that 2011 marijuana use was the lowest it has been since 2006.

Driving Trucks While Under the Influence of Drugs

Semi-trucks can weigh up to 80,000 pounds. If not carefully controlled, they can become death machines on our highways. By using drugs, truck drivers alter their perception, coordination, balance and attention. Drugs negatively impact a driver's motor skills and reaction time, which is particularly dangerous as it can take a semi-truck almost 200 feet to come to a complete stop after traveling 55 miles per hour.

Driving while under the influence of drugs or alcohol is illegal. If a truck driver is pulled over while driving under the influence of drugs, he or she can face criminal charges. When drugs are involved in a trucking accident, the driver and his or her employer can face additional consequences through a personal injury lawsuit.

Proof that the truck driver was impaired by drugs or alcohol will carry significant weight in assigning liability to the driver and the company that employed him or her. By showing such negligence, an injured party may be able to recover medical expenses, lost wages, compensation for pain and suffering, punitive damages and more.

If you or a loved one has been involved in a trucking accident, contact an experienced personal injury attorney to discuss your situation and your options.

Article provided by Henness & Haight, Injury Attorneys
Visit us at www.hennessandhaight.com/