Reckless and speeding truck drivers on Chicagoland highways must be identified, apprehended and punished. As the tragic Sept. 28 crash at Illinois Highways 53 and 83 again demonstrates, truck drivers are involved in many severe crashes.
Much more enforcement for these large and heavy vehicles is needed immediately. The truck drivers are almost immune to any realistic enforcement as their citizens band radios and their illegal radar detectors thwart most police efforts. Consider how rare it is to see a truck driver pulled over for speeding!
One promising technology to help reduce crashes by truck drivers is photo radar. The newer photo-radar units can identify large vehicles such as trucks, and statistics prove that speeding and tailgating by these vehicles will be greatly minimized with these devices, and resultant crashes reduced significantly.
Some jurisdictions report a 50 percent drop in crashes when photo radar has been used. National City, Calif., regularly uses photo radar with tremendous success.
It is time to use innovative methods to combat aggressive and dangerous drivers–the standard means are failing us.
