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Showing posts with label Transportation accidents. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Transportation accidents. Show all posts

Monday, June 23, 2014

Trucking Lobby Blocking Safety Legislation

While serious transportation work-related accidents raise public attention for increased efforts to rein in unsafe transportation issues, the strong and effective trucking lobby has created a road block for reform. Today's post is shared from northjersey.com
Democrat Cory Booker is waging his first floor fight in the U.S. Senate, taking on colleagues in both parties who want to suspend regulations specifying how much rest truck drivers should get each week.
The issue drew attention because of the high-profile crash involving comedian Tracy Morgan on the New Jersey Turnpike this month, but it is also so closely identified with Booker’s predecessor, Sen. Frank Lautenberg, that a safety-advocacy group named a “congressional courage” award after Lauten­berg last week.
Booker, who filled Lautenberg’s term after he died last year, was also assigned to Laut­enb­erg’s spot on the subcommittee that regulates federal highways and the trucks and buses that use them. It’s natural, he said, for someone coming from such a con­gested state to make regulating large trucks a priority.
“New Jersey sent me down to fight New Jersey’s fight, and this is a New Jersey fight,” Booker said.
It’s a fight he may not win, however.
The trucking industry spends an average of $5 million on contributions to members of Congress during every two-year campaign cycle — Booker himself got $2,000 — and $10 million more...
[Click here to see the rest of this post]

Thursday, June 13, 2013

Apple Is Moving Distracted Driving Into High Gear

Transportation accidents account for a high proportion of work-related fatalities, and Apple's announcement with week of increasing the access of iCar-Technology into the automobile is raising serious concerns among safety lobbyists.

Workers' compensation insurance companies in co-ordination with the US Department of
IOS in the Car
Heavy Integration Announced
at Apple Conference
Transportation (DOT) have made major efforts over the last few years to target distracted driving as a major safety issue to avoid serious accidents and ultimately save lives and reduce insurance costs. The DOT reports, "Distracted driving is a dangerous epidemic on America's roadways. In 2011 alone, over 3,000 people were killed in distracted driving crashes."

As of June 2013, 41 state, the District of Columbia, and Guam ban text messaging for all drivers. Also, 11 states, the District of Columbia, and the Virgin Islands, prohibit all drivers from using handheld phones while driving.