No More Changing Flats Roadside?

[x635 4,066]

Interesting campaign to stop service providers from changing tires on the side of high speed roadways. Around 50-60 Towers die each year struck on the side of the road, and this campaign is looking to reduce that. Very similar to some blossoming FD and PD initiatives to wrap up highway incidents as quickly as possible.

Information on the campaign: http://www.thenata.com/towfirst.html

Here's a couple of highlights from the article:

Have you changed a tire on a new, Mercedes Benz CL450 seven-passenger SUV recently? First, it takes 10 minutes or more just to find where the spare is kept, taking it out, changing tires, and returning it to where the spare goes—not including replacing all the crap that's found in the back of today's Urban Mom-mobiles.

Tow First is a TIM-approved, white-line initiative introduced by industry trainer Dave Lambert, that advocates towing or transporting vehicles off high-speed highways to safer locations before changing a flat tire. We preach no tire changes on the highway; that's where towers are constantly and consistently killed. Working tire changes means that drivers and service technicians face greater exposure to dangers every minute spent working these kinds of scenarios.

And a couple of quotes from the campaign website:

Even when the tower takes every step necessary to protect the breakdown location, they have no control of the approaching vehicles. The other drivers may be on their phone, texting, drunk, or doing anything other than paying attention to the road ahead.

Additionally, because of the posture and positioning of the tower while changing a tire, approaching traffic may not be visible and the tower may not have the ability to move quickly should the need arise. Eliminating tire changes on the side of a highway, interstate, or turnpike on light-duty vehicles can save lives.

The number of tire changes actually performed does not nearly equal the number of dispatches for the service. The lack of a spare tire or the spare is flat; no key for the locking lugnuts or the lugnuts are too tight; and, the vehicle manufacturer no longer includes a spare in their new car are a few reasons why we already tow many vehicles with flat tires.

Information on the campaign: http://www.thenata.com/towfirst.html

Article: http://www.towindustryweek.net/operations

[Remember585 815]

Not a terrible idea...

[STAT213 332]

Wait, so all those lights don't do anything?

Huh, wonder if the cops will catch on?

[dwcfireman 656]

Wait, so all those lights don't do anything?

Huh, wonder if the cops will catch on?

As a former part-time tow truck driver, the unfortunate answer is the one I'll give you. The yellow lights used to give drivers a heads up about the dangerous situation on the side of the road, but they don't care anymore. It's the same with construction zones....no one cares anymore. It's extremely dangerous to do something as simple as changing a tire, or even dragging a disabled vehicle onto the flatbed. There are too many drivers that are either distracted or don't care.

Some cops have caught on. For a while I refused to do anything on I-684 without a trooper present. It got to the point where every time I went to the interstate a trooper was waiting for me, and would wait for me to drive away.

[INIT915 1,119]

The lights help, a lot, often. Many, many, many drivers appropriately reduce speed and move over. It's the exceptions that present the danger.

I hope the impetus behind this is not cost. Many tow operators charges hundreds of dollars, just to hook it up and take it off the parkway, while a tire change is considerably less profitable.

Anyone who thinks you can completely remove the dangers of working on a parkway are delusional. PD, FD, DOT, tow operators will always face some level of risk as long as they operate on open roadways.

[velcroMedic1987 330]

The lights help, a lot, often. Many, many, many drivers appropriately reduce speed and move over. It's the exceptions that present the danger.

I hope the impetus behind this is not cost. Many tow operators charges hundreds of dollars, just to hook it up and take it off the parkway, while a tire change is considerably less profitable.

Anyone who thinks you can completely remove the dangers of working on a parkway are delusional. PD, FD, DOT, tow operators will always face some level of risk as long as they operate on open roadways.

As vividly illustrated by the cop hit by a car in Yonkers that had to go to Jacobi today.