Posted on 05/26/15

in The News

By W. Andrew Bowen

Tragic loss of life resulting from tractor-trailer wrecks has dominated the recent local news. As a community, we continue to mourn the loss of all of these innocent victims as well as the survivors who now live with terrible injuries, both physical and emotional.

Much of the conversation has rightfully been on the safety records of the drivers and trucking companies involved. As a trial lawyer who has handled such cases, I am all too aware of the consequences when trucking companies skirt safety regulations and hope that public scrutiny of the trucking industry continues until the roads are safer, lest these lives be lost in vain.

These tragedies, however, highlight another serious safety issue that we, as a community, and our local and state leaders need to address: improving our roadways.

This past weekend, this paper ran a comprehensive story about the continued expansion of our port and the indications that our port will continue to grow, and grow significantly.

While a welcome and exciting boom to our community, the increased volume of cargo will mean increased tractor-trailer volume on our highways and interstates. Unfortunately, our roads are not capable of handling the volume of big trucks coming into and out of Savannah today, much less five or 10 years from now when there will be even more trucks on the road.

If our roads and highways are not improved with the idea of accommodating increased traffic, dangerous traffic patterns will only increase and tragedies like the ones we have witnessed recently will become much too common. The time to act is now.

ANDREW BOWEN

Savannah

This Letter to the Editor was published in the Savannah Morning News on Tuesday, May 26, 2015.