Lifesaving highway driving tips were presented last week at the Denver Auto Show as part of the American Trucking Associations’ national Share the Road highway safety tour by top professional truck drivers.
The Share the Road stop demonstrated to drivers how to share the road safely with large trucks and was presented in conjunction with the Colorado Motor Carriers Association. Featured at the event were professional truck drivers Steve Fields (Yellow Transportation), Manny Franco (UPS Freight), Ralph Garcia (ABF Freight System) and David May (Con-way Freight). Those drivers are members of an elite team of million-mile accident-free truck drivers who deliver the trucking industry’s safety messages across the country.
“Denver is a great city, and we are glad to be here to help educate motorists on how to safely drive around tractor-trailers,” Fields says. “I travel through Denver on my route to deliver the nation’s essentials, so I feel like I am making a difference here with motorists I see on the highways. Hopefully attendees will leave the show with a better understanding of passing safely, maintaining a safe speed and keeping a minimum following distance, so we can all get home safely to our families.”
The safety demonstration at the Denver Auto Show continued through Sunday, March 30, with special arrangements available for a private demonstration or a highway “ride-along” for media today, March 31. Reporters will be able to view safe merging and stopping distances from the truck driver’s perspective, and learn up close and personal some of the differences between how cars and large trucks operate on the highways.
“Share the Road allows me as a truck driver to give people lifesaving advice,” Franco says. “Most automobile drivers were never taught what they can do to avoid an accident with a tractor-trailer. By being aware of the blind spots around trucks, all drivers can more easily avoid crashes. This information, and other safety advice, will help everyone to share the roads safely.”
