One sunny spring morning, a small Mazda tailgated trucker John Doe as he approached an intersection controlled by a traffic light. Just 60 feet beyond the intersection was a railroad grade crossing with another traffic light, plus signal arms and bells to warn of an approaching locomotive.
That's the scene set at the start of the video above, part of Overdrive sister publication CCJ's "Preventable or not?" series, where Doe is presented with a stark choice. Though both of the traffic lights were green as he made his way through the intersection, his rig came within several feet of the tracks when the grade-crossing light turned red and the signal arm began to descend.
Stand on the brakes and that Mazda 6, still tailgating Doe's rig, was sure to run smack into his trailer underride guard. He made his decision and floored it -- crack! -- straight through the descending arm, mangling his truck's right-side mirror and cracking his windshield.
His fleet's safety director sent him a preventable-accident warning letter for his efforts, which Doe contested, asking the National Safety Council’s Accident Review Committee to render final judgment. Find out how the NSC came down in the video.
More in the "Preventable or not?" series at this link.
[Related: Preventable or not? When to use DataQs to request crash reviews in FMCSA's preventability program]
Owner-operators and other carriers with authority can seek preventability reviews for an expanded set of DOT-recordable crashes through FMCSA's Crash Preventability Determination Program, including any crash for which video evidence shows the full sequence of the crash. The process for requesting a review takes place through the FMCSA's DataQs system. Crashes deemed nonpreventable after a review are excluded from the Crash Indicator category ratings in the CSA Safety Measurement System. Overdrive's Partners in Business comprehensive guide to running a small trucking business includes this primer on when and how to request preventability reviews.
Hear plenty in the way of advice around the importance of having clearly nonpreventable crashes reviewed in the federal program in this early-2024 edition of the Overdrive Radio podcast. Find it also in the playlist of the top podcasts of 2024 below.
