Share the Road Professional Truck Drivers Deliver Safety Lessons to Montana Students

BILLINGS, Mont., June 20, 2016 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Today, American Trucking Associations partnered with Motor Carriers of Montana and ATA's Share the Road highway safety program to deliver life-saving safety lessons to Billings, Montana area high school students.

"The young men and women we're speaking to this week have a whole life of driving ahead of them, so we want them to be equipped with the tools they'll need in order to safely operate their vehicles near large trucks," said Share the Road professional truck driver Allen Boyd, of Walmart Transportation. "One of the big things we're focusing on is distracted driving because the next generation of drivers will have access to technology that makes distracted driving more tempting than ever."

Students at Billings Senior, Skyview and Billings West High Schools have the opportunity to sit in the cab of a tractor-trailer and find out what a professional truck driver is able to see from the driver's seat. Large trucks have blind spots on all four sides, with the largest blind spot extending from the passenger's side door to the rear of the trailer and out three lanes. Share the Road professional truck drivers are emphasizing the critical need for motorists to quickly and safely pass through truck blind spots, while also touching on subjects such as maintaining appropriate following distance, the dangers of cutting in front of a truck and the importance of being aware at all times.

"Professional truck drivers are able to travel the country and see a lot of great things, but one thing we're not always able to see is a car in our truck's blind spot," said Share the Road professional truck driver Wayne Crowder, of FedEx Freight. "I've found that a lot of young drivers, and many veteran motorists as well, simply are not exposed to our message about how to properly drive near a large truck. We're trying to share that message with students here today so that they'll be able to recognize and prevent unsafe driving behaviors in the future."

Share the Road professional drivers also volunteered for the Montana Truck Driving Championships hosted by Motor Carriers of Montana. The state's truck driving championships give drivers an opportunity to compete in essential safety events with participants identifying safety concerns during pre-trip inspections, completing a written examination and driving through an obstacle course meant to test their physical abilities as truck drivers. The school demonstrations and truck driving championships both contribute to Share the Road's mission of improving safety on the nation's highways.

Share the Road is a highway safety outreach program of the American Trucking Associations that educates all drivers about sharing the roads safely with large trucks. An elite team of professional truck drivers with millions of accident-free miles deliver life-saving messages to millions of motorists annually. The safety program is sponsored by Mack Trucks Inc., and supported by TA-Petro, Pre-Pass, Hyundai Translead, OmniTracs, SmartDrive, Mack Leasing, Bendix and Spireon. www.atastr.org. Follow the Share the Road on Twitter and Facebook.

American Trucking Associations is the largest national trade association for the trucking industry. Through a federation of 50 affiliated state trucking associations and industry-related conferences and councils, ATA is the voice of the industry America depends on most to move our nation's freight. Follow ATA on Twitter or on Facebook. Trucking Moves America Forward.

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SOURCE American Trucking Associations

CONTACT: Elisabeth Barna, 703-838-1945, ebarna@trucking.org