SAFETY RECORDS OF TRUCKS USED FOR LONG HAUL HEAVY GOODS MOVEMENT

In an environment of changing truck size and weight restrictions in Canada, there is concern over the safety implications of longer and heavier trucks operating on the highways. This paper reviews the existing literature on truck safety and tries to assess available information that addresses truck safety as a function of truck size, payload and length of haul. Some of the findings are as follows: 1) the number of accidents per vehicle-kilometre travelled tends to decrease as gross vehicle weight increases (although the range of gross vehicle weights observed was much lower than the allowable limits in Canada); 2) statistics regarding the effect of vehicle combination on the number of accidents per vehicle kilometer travelled were inconclusive; 3) information on accident rates as a function of truck height, length and width was not sufficiently available to make any valid conclusions, and 4) exposure rates by ton-miles or tonne-kilometres are uncommon, thus making it difficult to compare rail and truck safety records. In view of the importance of the subject and the lack of comparable data, it is concluded that a comprehensive study should be carried out in Canada, dedicated to studying the accident occurrence of different types of trucks. See also IRRD 807147.