Virginia lawmakers may be experiencing a knee-jerk reaction to a January truck accident that shuttered I-95. On a 26-13 vote, the Virginia state Senate advanced a bill that would restrict commercial motor vehicles to the right lane during inclement weather.
“We’re still doing the autopsy on what happened that day and how the response could have been better,” Democratic state Sen. Dave Marsden reportedly said. “But this was the only thing I could think of to do as chairman of the Senate Transportation Committee of getting a message out to truckers that, when these conditions start to arise, you need to take better care.”
On Monday, Jan. 4, a tractor-trailer reportedly jack-knifed blocking I-95 and bringing traffic to a standstill. Officials were not able to quickly remove the damaged vehicles, and a bottleneck reportedly reach 50 miles at its peak. Some reports indicate vehicles were unable to move on stretches of I-95 north and southbound. Hundreds were trapped in frigid winter conditions for upwards of 20 hours in some areas. Adding insult to trapped motorist injury, Virginia officials reportedly failed to provide emergency services, food, or water for residents as snow fell and temperatures dropped overnight.
“No one came. It was just shocking,” trapped motorist Meera Rao reportedly said. “Being in the most advanced country in the world, no one knew how to even clear one lane for all of us to get out of that mess?”
When all the facts are considered, Marsden and other lawmakers appear to be pinning the unnecessary crisis solely on truckers. Had the accident been a school bus or multiple passenger vehicles piling up, politicians would probably not be restricting their highway driving habits. That may be why members of the Virginia Trucking Association (VTA) pushed back on the language they saw as too stringent.
“As with most right-lane restrictions, you create a wall of trucks that will make it extremely difficult and increase the safety risks of other people in vehicles trying to get off the interstate or enter the interstate,” VTA president Dale Bennett reportedly said.
Marsden’s bill initially required all commercial motor vehicles to travel only in the right lane during periods of rain, sleet, or snow. Like so many lawmakers that do not understand the wide-reaching safety considerations involved in hauling freight, the bill may prove impractical. VTA officials were at least able to negotiate language that provided truckers with some decision-making flexibility.
“(Marsden) amended the lane restriction language to allow truck drivers to drive defensively,” Bennett reportedly said. “In other words, to allow people that need to get into the right-hand lane to leave the interstate, violating the Move Over Law.”
If the bill passes the Virginia House of Representatives, it could become law as early as July 1.
Sources: freightwaves.com, 13newsnow.com, independent.co.uk, usnews.com
We need to stop delivering in Virginia for about a week or two and see were they want to let us drive.? When they are no food on the shelves .no fuel .no it was a bad thing that happened . Okay look at all the four wheelers that do even worse than that .but that is hasn’t been restricted 🚫… that trut hatck jack knife up ⬆️ okay is truth be told because a car probably caused the problem .but Drivers won’t do anything except bitch about
You are EXACTLY CORRECT!!!! NO DOUBT in my experience of 40+ years of driving that a 4 wheeler probably caused the jack-knifed rig! I agree… STOP driving & delivering to VA and let them stew on that for a couple of weeks if they continue this bill of truckers in the right lane only shit! I think infrastructure should build us truckers our own TWO Lanes of interstate that 2, 3, & 4 wheelers are NOT ALLOWED to drive on! That will solve that problem!
Another person sitting in a office that never been in truck making decisions that will affect thousand. You would think he would look to see why it took so long to clear one jack knife truck. It’s always the truck driver fault
Then you clowns need to restrict cars from being in the interstate they cause 95% of the accidents
Just as wrong as the nuts who say trucks cause 95% of the accidents.
I think everyone should do like they do in nascar wait it out stop
That’s why before I retired I refused any loads going east, I went to the middle of Pennsylvania and that’s as Far East as I went. All the crap their putting on you guys now I feel for you.
Once again, blame the truckers. I knew this would happen. During the pandemic, truckers kept the goods moving and we were herald as heroes. Well, the pandemic is over and once again we’re the villain. Need money? Tax trucks. Traffic bottlenecks? Blame trucks. Accidents? Blame trucks. It’s ALWAYS the truck’s fault even though static’s prove otherwise. Why don’t politicians put these restrictions on cars? They won’t cuz cars = votes and their votes far outweigh truckers votes. I see people lining the roads cheering on the truckers going to Washington DC, two, three months from now those same people will be cussing us cuz we’re slowing them down, getting in their way. Glad I’m bout done. This law is just another example of how politicians don’t give a rat’s ass about the people, who not bout getting re-elected. Prove me wrong.
Well you have to blame the driver don’t you? If he hadn’t jackknifed the hiway patrol, state, and local officials wouldn’t have failed to do their job.
This won’t be the first time Virginia has passed a law that damaged itself, so no one should be surprised.
No trucks in the left lane who’re going below the speed limit? Are they serious? Talk about often stupid traffic jambs through the Appalachians!
No billboards on the interstate? Do they think they’re living in an exchange-less utopia, where none of their businesses need money?
That state has a history of passing these kinds of laws. But do the lawmakers care? Of course not. Sitting up there in their Olympian positions and with their wealth, they never have to feel the sting of what they put their people through, with their poor decision-making. “Just throw it out there, baby! It makes our RICH constituents happy!” Because you KNOW that that billboard law had to come some rich fuddyduddy who one day decided billboards were an affront to their view of what Virginia ought to look like on a pretty day. But I digress.
I haven’t set foot in that state in about two years. Good riddance, I say. I wouldn’t give a single blink if I learned tomorrow, that it fell off into the sea.
American lawmakers are the BEST
Another proof that Democrats are damn idiots
I-95 is a sh*t show regardless of where you are on it. The interstate needs double the lanes to handle the amount of traffic it gets. Limiting trucks to the right lane even just for rain is going to create even bigger problems. I’ll just keep avoiding the east/northeast region just as I’ve done the last 10 years.
“KNEE JERK REACTION” is being to nice. Morons holding official positions that don’t know their rear from their elbow making snap judgements. It happens ALL THE TIME……..I’m getting tired of these BS regulations and stipulations being put on us by people who have not a clue about the industry. We’re all going to hell in a hand basket at this rate any more. Crazy days we are living in…..CRAZY !!
Right, right. Punish truckers to protect 4-wheelers from themselves. This will only cause more accident and will cause one hell of a back-up, even if there is no accident.