SACRAMENTO — The California Highway Patrol (CHP) joins the trucking industry this week in saluting commercial freight drivers for their hard work and commitment during National Truck Driver Appreciation Week.
“There are millions of commercial drivers who safely travel on California”s highways each day,” CHP Commissioner Joe Farrow said.
“Sometimes it is difficult to appreciate what the trucking industry does for us. One way for fellow motorists to show appreciation is to remember that trucks accelerate and stop at a slower rate than passenger vehicles, and the truck driver”s ability to see other vehicles is limited,” he added.
Commercial vehicles are involved in approximately 5 percent of the crashes that occur in California every year, according to CHP”s Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System (SWITRS).
The same SWITRS data shows a 30-percent decrease in the number of truck-involved crashes from 2006 to 2010. Additionally, there was a 33-percent decrease in truck-at-fault crashes during that same time.
The CHP manages safety oversight of approximately 7.4 million commercial vehicles, which travel approximately 30 million miles on 105,000 miles of roadway in the state each year.
The agency works with industry advocates and commercial vehicle operators to ensure the safe operations of commercial vehicles on California”s highways.
The CHP also facilitates Trucker Appreciation Days periodically during the year at its commercial enforcement facilities throughout the state.
