The frustration of being behind a big rig and unable to see around it to pass is a common one for many Louisiana motorists. New technology, consisting of cameras and rear-mount view screens, may prove capable of solving the problem. However, this is unlikely to see widespread adoption anytime soon due to regulatory hurdles, criticism and possibly expense.
Samsung is the developer of a “safety truck” prototype which the company claims can reduce the risk of truck accidents. The problem is a lack of visibility for drivers behind large trucks. Attempting to accelerate and pass can become little more than a guessing game in such situations, and it could lead to a multi-vehicle collision. The technology uses front-mount cameras that send the image to a set of screens on the back of the truck, which provide a view of the road ahead to drivers of vehicles following the truck.
One critic of the new technology called it more a distraction than anything else and pointed to development of self-driving vehicles as a more promising line of research. Regardless of domestic acceptance, the prototype has been tested in Argentina, and Samsung hopes to continue its development.
New technologies are promising to pick up the slack between a high rate of automobile crashes and the many education and enforcement campaigns designed to prevent them. A tractor-trailer crash can often be severe. Those who are involved in such accidents often are faced with high medical expenses and financial hardship. If the trucking accident was caused by the negligence of another driver, a personal injury attorney may assist an injured victim in filing a lawsuit seeking damages from the responsible party.
