A court ruling that is costing Celadon millions of dollars has inspired them to change their rules about drivers using cruise control while operating in inclement weather. A judge awarded $18.5 million dollars to the families of two men who died in a crash involving a Celadon driver who was using cruise control when it was inappropriate to do so.
The crash occurred back in 2011 on I-94 in Indiana when the driver rear-ended the victims’ car which was stopped in the roadway due to the car in front of them losing control on the icy roads. The EOBR in the driver’s vehicle recorded that he was driving 65mph on cruise control just moments before impact. The load he was hauling was 21 tons of crushed marble.
Celadon argued in court that they should not be held responsible because the driver could not have avoided the crash because of invisible ice on the roads and that the victims should also be held partially responsible for the crash for having stopped in the middle of the road.
The jury found the driver 60% at fault for the accident and Celadon 40% at fault.
As a result of the ruling, Celadon has issued a statement that Celadon now trains its drivers to not use cruise control during inclement conditions.
Source: landline
Image Source: redline
I thought this was common knowledge.
im gussing their was not one truck driver on that jury
It could be debated that there wasn’t one at the wheel of the Celadon truck either. I’d give pretty good odds at that, come to think of it.
Of course perhaps the Billy Bigrigger instructional manual being bilingual might’ve helped too?
I agree with Celadon. If the ice wasn’t visible enough to recognize, they shouldn’t be held responsible. I am a true witness that clear ice can be present and not even know its there!
TODAY CLASS…WE WILL LEARN HOW TO TURN OFF OUR CRUISE CONTROL JUST BEFORE WE JACK KNIFE.
First off no one should have to tell you not to use cruise control in inclement weather. You’re taught that when you learn to drive a car. Then when you are studying to obtain your cdl. So basically he was doing what he wanted to do , by doing that he’s paid the ultimate price….humans lives..
How times have changed. My grandfather was killed in the late 60’s by a truckdriver trying to light a cigarette, and lost control. To make a long story short…..there was no payday.
This is tort law run amok. Unless the carrier effectively removes or turns off the cruise control feature, there is no way to stop a driver from doing stupid stuff. And it was all the driver’s fault. End of story. Any idiot that uses cruise control in winter inclement weather is a candidate for the Darwin Awards. This is basic, boys and girls. Do not use cruise control during degraded road conditions. It is debatable that even the speed the driver was running at the time was proper for the conditions. Just shows what that if you pay by the mile, and stick a monkey behind the wheel, that they will run on the speed limiter on cruise control like a brain dead fool. You can’t fix stupid.
Driving with cruise control on in bad weather is a no/no. However, it appears in this case that the usage of cruise control played no part in this incident. It seems to me that the driver would have hit the car anyway due to inattentiveness of what was going on down the road. The only way you could blame the usage of cruise control in a wreck is if it caused the vehicle to lose control while engaged.
I’m not sure why cruise control is an issue here. The problem was that the driver could not stop the truck in time. That has to do with going 65mph on ice and not keeping proper following distance. Why is cruise the focus here?
my thoughts also!!!
Huhuuuh!
Well, from the sounds of it (unsure of the specifics of the case), the truck driver was going far too fast for the conditions as well as using cruise control and possibly not paying enough attention. The car driver was also at fault because they stopped in the middle of the road. Never ever stop in the middle of a highway. Pull off to the side or you run a high risk of being rear ended by car drivers or truck drivers. What bothers me is they totally ignored the faults of the car driver and focused only on the truck driver and their company. I say it was 65% truck drivers fault and 35% car drivers fault. The award was also far too high. Shows me they hired a “good lawyer” (if you want to call any of them good).
The vehicle codes in most states are black and white. If you rear-end another vehicle, you are 100% at fault.
This just proves how the professional is being taken out of the truck driver these days. Many of these drivers cannot drive a car well and safely. Let alone a large vehicle. No common sense at all!
I call into question Celedon’s continued training program. It should be common knowledge to NOT use your cruise control or the engine break in “bad weather”.
Why not just eliminate the EOBR? All this information the carriers and the Feds want to collect in the name of safety and efficiency just cost Celadon a cool 18.5 million. Paper logs would have prevented that verdict. But they can’t be used anymore because drivers who know how to properly log their hours the old fashioned way won’t work for the lousy treatment and wages paid by the MEGA carriers. Dumbing down the standards to compensate for unqualified operators will only exacerbate the problem. Can’t read a map? No problem, follow the arrows on the screen. Don’t understand the HOS? No sweat, the computer will tell when you can drive. It’s the company’s fault the driver was using cruise control in inclement weather. Why does the truck let you use cruise control in inclement weather? That’ll be next. Trucks will have to be hooked up to weather radar so certain functions will be disabled automatically. That way tradegies like this won’t happen again. God forbid well trained professional operators be compensated appropriately or their work. Just stopping letting people drive trucks and we can eliminate all of this.
It’s common knowledge, AND COMMON SENSE, not to use cruise control in bad weather.
What’s also LOST in this land of COMMON SENSE DRIVING BY EVERYONE IS moving to the right side of the highway.
We’ve all seen this time after time, where vehicle’s SLOW DOWN IN THE MIDDLE OF THE INTERSTATE, BELOW 45 MPH, and turn the 4 way flashers on.
These drivers fail to remember that slower travel on interstate highways require,
MOVING TO THE RIGHT LANE OF TRAVEL, OR JUST GET OFF THE INTERSTATE.
These “weekend travel warrior’s” who get out here with their motor coach’s, pulling campers, and boats, seem to think turning the 4 way flashers on in the answer to continued travel in the center or left lanes of the interstate, as they slow to a speed well below the posted speed limit.
If it’s ice, snowy conditions, or heavy down pours of rain, that effect one’s visibility to see or control their vehicle on the interstate highway,
THE LAW READS TO MOVE TO THE RIGHT LANE OF TRAVEL.
It’s also time for the states to review this slower travel to the right law, and be sure that in the written test exam’s this scenario has enough question to bring to the attention that ALL DRIVERS should move to the right lane under adverse driving conditions to travel at a slower speed, on the interstate highway.
I would think the driver’s lawyer, and legal team for Celadon have an appeal for challenge, to the other party if they were traveling well under the posted speed limit of the interstate if they were in the center or left lanes of the highway.
ALL SLOWER SPEED TRAVEL KEEP TO THE RIGHT…!
OTHERWISE JUST GET OFF THE INTERSTATE TILL ROAD CONDITIONS IMPROVE ..!
This is my biggest beef with my fellow Professional Truck Drivers. Following distance is the single most important thing in determining how safe a driver is….by far!
If you keep a nice, big safety cushion between yourself and the traffic in front of you, there is practically nothing that can happen to get you involved in a rear-end collision.
This driver didn’t observe a save following distance and two people died.