Many of the worst collisions reported every year occur on interstates and freeways. Vehicles traveling at high speeds can be particularly dangerous when crashes occur, and crashes on busy roads may involve more than just two vehicles. Especially if one of the vehicles involved in a collision is a semi-truck, higher speeds can lead to catastrophic injuries and devastating property damage.
While many of the worst crashes involving semi-trucks happen on streets with high speed limits, intersections are where a large number of semi-truck crashes occur every year. According to a federal analysis of 2020 collision data, over a quarter of all semi-truck crashes, approximately 26%, took place at intersections.
What makes an intersection such a dangerous place for those encountering semi-trucks?
The chaos of multiple streams of traffic
Anytime vehicles cross paths with one another while moving in different directions, the risk of a collision is there. All it takes is confusion about which driver needs to yield and who has the right of way for a crash to occur. Some intersections may be more dangerous than others due to visibility issues and high volumes of traffic passing through them on any given day.
Blind spots
Semi-trucks are so tall and long that drivers cannot realistically see all around them which would be ideal for optimal safety. Those blind spots create the risk of a truck driver failing to see someone approaching in an adjacent lane of traffic. While blind spots tend to be more of an issue on highways and interstates, they can contribute to intersection crashes as well.
Dangerously wide turns
The final reason that intersections see so many semi-truck crashes is that a truck cannot turn as smoothly as a smaller vehicle. The wide turns that they complete can cross multiple other lanes of traffic and may require that other vehicles back up after previously stopping in the intersection.
When semi-truck crashes occur, the people in smaller vehicles are likely to have worse outcomes than the occupants of the semi-trucks. Pursuing an insurance claim or possibly a personal injury lawsuit can help compensate those injured in a crash caused by another’s negligence at a busy intersection.