Trucks Are Killing Us • Hacker News Board

Re: Trucks Are Killing Us

#31

Post by [deleted] » Sat, Aug 22, 2015, 5:47 PM UTC

Sanddancer wrote: post #14

ape4 wrote: post #11

Something semi-automated like speedlimit signs that radio out info which the truck receives and enforces seems possible.

Signs like those could be a godsend to teenagers out for a prank. Steal one from a road with a speed limit of 25, and put it on the interstate where the speed limit's 55, or the opposite, a speed limit of 55 in a 25 zone. I guess you could potentially add geofencing to the signs, but that means tacking up a roadsign becomes a lot more difficult as you suddenly need to spend the time to reprogram signs when you post t…

[deleted]

Re: Trucks Are Killing Us

#32

Post by lutorm » Sat, Aug 22, 2015, 5:47 PM UTC

donatj wrote: post #13

> About a mile before the crash, the driver ignored work-zone warning signs on the New Jersey Turnpike of likely delays What was expected here, honestly? Should he have made a note in his notebook? > About a half-mile later, the posted speed limit dropped to 45 m.p.h. from the usual 65, which the driver also ignored. Truly more often than not the people who do slow down are in the vast minority and arguably the bigge…

Highway construction crews must love people like you.

Re: Trucks Are Killing Us

#33

Post by donatj » Sat, Aug 22, 2015, 5:48 PM UTC

jessaustin wrote: post #21

donatj wrote: post #13

> About a mile before the crash, the driver ignored work-zone warning signs on the New Jersey Turnpike of likely delays What was expected here, honestly? Should he have made a note in his notebook? > About a half-mile later, the posted speed limit dropped to 45 m.p.h. from the usual 65, which the driver also ignored. Truly more often than not the people who do slow down are in the vast minority and arguably the bigge…

I suspect you are a poor driver.

Never had a single accident.

Re: Trucks Are Killing Us

#34

Post by joesmo » Sat, Aug 22, 2015, 5:51 PM UTC

machbio wrote: post #20

The Solution is the Train - that I don't understand why has not dominated in US, though it being a big industry in earlier part of the 20th Century

The cost of running rail to supply all the routes currently served by truck now (and generally in the last 50-60 years) is so high that it's infeasible. The less populated and poor the destination, the higher the costs (and most remote areas are both sparsely populated and poor). I think you're seriously underestimating the vastness of the US and the remoteness of the majority of it. Sure, given enough investment and dedication, a nationwide rail network would have been possible but the decision to build America as a car/truck country was taken in the late 40's/early 50's and it's too late to reverse that, even at a governmental level. People expect to live in remote areas now and have all the comforts of a city. That's simply not possible with rail at a sane cost. Not only are cars and trucks more flexible, but the transportation expenses can be shared between commercial and personal transportation. People in America generally don't take trains (and don't like them) and outside of small regional areas, passenger trains are mostly a novelty that run sometimes days late. Between the geography and people's attitudes/expectations, there is no room for trains in America and it shows.

Re: Trucks Are Killing Us

#35

Post by notNow » Sat, Aug 22, 2015, 5:52 PM UTC

macNchz wrote: post #3

Self-driving trucks seem to have such great promise to improve the safety and efficiency of the trucking industry and our highways in general. Even if they're only self-driving during the long haul sections and human drivers take over for local deliveries it would make a huge difference. Hopefully the various interested lobbies don't try to put too many artificial barriers in the way of self driving trucks becoming a…

I think that the trucking industry is one of the biggest employers in the US. Are you OK with devastating these people's lives for extra efficiency promised safety?

Before we push for more automation and job losses, we need to revamp the whole political/economic/social system to ensure a more egalitarian income distribution since the vast majority of the Earth's population are proletariat who exchange their labor in return for capital to make a living.

Re: Trucks Are Killing Us

#36

Post by kctess5 » Sat, Aug 22, 2015, 5:56 PM UTC

machbio wrote: post #20

The Solution is the Train - that I don't understand why has not dominated in US, though it being a big industry in earlier part of the 20th Century

Well, we already have one of the worlds most extensive road systems. Building the same with rails would be a monumental undertaking, but putting smarter trucks on the road would be almost free. So there's that...

Re: Trucks Are Killing Us

#37

Post by A_COMPUTER » Sat, Aug 22, 2015, 5:57 PM UTC

jessaustin wrote: post #17

The trucking industry... insists that it needs longer work weeks... so that more trucks will not be needed on the road, which it says could result in more accidents. That logic is laughable, but Congress seems to be buying it. Yeah that makes zero sense. If drivers are driving more, trucks will be on the road more. The actual result of sane work hours would be that more drivers would share trucks and drive in shifts,…

You joke, but for years now certain corners have been trying to open it up so so that Mexican trucks/drivers to operate in the USA.

Re: Trucks Are Killing Us

#38

Post by nulagrithom » Sat, Aug 22, 2015, 5:57 PM UTC

> It has pushed to allow truck drivers to work 82 hours a week, up from the current 70 hours over eight days, by eliminating the requirement that drivers take a two-day rest break each week;

There was a different problem with the two-day rest break:

> Must include two periods from 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. home terminal time.

Because obviously the trucking industry shouldn't be working graveyard. That's the part that was suspended. It screws with scheduling. 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. is arbitrary.

http://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/regulations/hours-service/summary-h...

> discouraged the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration from investing in wireless technology designed to improve the monitoring of drivers and their vehicles;

Either this is VERY recent news or just misleading. This is happening as far as everyone can tell. The mandate for electronic logging devices in all vehicles should be coming down late September, with a deadline of October 2017.

http://www.ccjdigital.com/e-log-mandate-advances-fmcsa-sends...

http://www.overdriveonline.com/eld-mandate-poised-to-begin-t...

Re: Trucks Are Killing Us

#39

Post by jerrac » Sat, Aug 22, 2015, 5:57 PM UTC

Driving while tired can be as dangerous as driving drunk. The occasional 14hr drive isn't horrible, but if you do that several days in a row, you're going to be really tired. So limiting the hours per day a truck driver drives seems like a good idea. As does "shift" driving.

Collision avoidance tech also seems like a good idea.

That said, I don't think we need the government to do anything.

Drivers can unionize and demand better hours. Insurance companies can require collision avoidance tech be installed. Etc.

And if you really believe the government needs to be involved, then it doesn't hurt to try both the government regulation route, and the self-regulation route at the same time. The latter could get implemented faster than the government....

Re: Trucks Are Killing Us

#40

Post by bro-stick » Sat, Aug 22, 2015, 5:58 PM UTC

machbio wrote: post #20

The Solution is the Train - that I don't understand why has not dominated in US, though it being a big industry in earlier part of the 20th Century

(Didn't downvote.) There is rarely, if ever, a singular "the solution" to an issue. Trains, boats, planes, trucks, couriers, etc. serve semi-overlapping needs. Trains did dominate the U.S. before the auto industry convinced people cars and highways were "better," and local commuter trains were scrapped over large parts of America. Yes, Europe has loads of them and you can't book an actual train ticket from Paris to Amsterdam (Thalys) online ahead-of-time either.

As a result of this indoctrination, a cultural allergy to trains became a core value of Americanism... single-occupant car == freedom, train/bus == low class.