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Highlands Today

FHP Cracks Down On Commercial Trucks

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By Dan  Fearson | Highlands Today

Published: November 3, 2007

SEBRING — Every day, Paul Travers can look outside his window and see a long line of semi-trucks lined up at the red light located to the north of the UPS store where he works.

"It seems like the commercial vehicle traffic has really increased over the last few weeks," said Travers. "It has to be more dangerous. With the amount of red lights that are on (U.S. 27), I would definitely say that there could be problems."

With this in mind, the Florida Highway Patrol's "Operation Safe Ride," a two-day campaign that took place last weekend, focused on reducing deaths and injuries on Florida roadways where hazardous traffic violations by drivers of commercial vehicles are prevalent.

"The vast majority of truck drivers are law-abiding individuals who help us out tremendously. Without them our economy and our livelihoods would not be the same," said Maj. Ernesto Duarte, of the FHP. "But we've had some very serious crashes lately involving commercial vehicles, so we decided to focus on them."

Duarte said the operation started in 2004 and its theme adjusts every year according to transportation trends. This year's state-wide campaign netted almost 600 commercial vehicle citations.

"We've heard an inordinate number of complaints about commercial vehicles so far this year," said Duarte. "The No. 1 complaint seems to be about trucks bearing down and tailgating."

"Part of our job is to inform the public and communicate with them about possible dangers they could be facing," said Duarte. "We usually try to do more around the holidays because there are more people around."

Duarte said the FHP places more troopers than usual on the roads during their campaigns, and the ultimate goal isn't to issue citations, it's to educate drivers. He also said that troopers focused on personal vehicles that were causing problems with commercial vehicles.

"Some trucks are carrying between 70,000 and 80,000 pounds of weight and could be carrying hazardous materials," said Duarte. "There are a number of things that drivers have to keep in mind when it comes to distance, braking and speed when it comes to safety."

Citations were issued to drivers for speeding, tailgating, cutting off vehicles, seatbelt violations, aggressive driving and faulty equipment.

"I think there's absolutely been an increase in commercial traffic (in Highlands County)," said Theresa Urso, of Sebring. "All you have to do is drive down the road to see the difference. A lot more semi-trucks seem to be out there."

"Driving with big trucks coming up from behind you and barreling down your back can be a little scary," said Urso. "But I think if you give the driver's respect, then they'll give it back to you."

Some folks, however, just don't like the congestion that the trucks cause.

"The traffic stinks," said Lori Lehane, of Sebring. "I think one of the biggest problems is that truck drivers sometimes don't stay in the same lane, or they clog up the fast lanes. I don't care whether there's a sign or not, there are always going to be bad drivers."

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