New England's Worst Highway Bottlenecks

Here's a useful overview for truck drivers showing the worst traffic bottleneck areas and the delays they cause on the major routes in New England: Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island broken down by major city areas and interchanges.

 Information Provided By: American Highway Users Alliance

Connecticut
Urban Area	County	Route	Location	Vehicles/Day	2002 Delay (Thous. Hours)
Hartford-Middletown	Hartford, CT	Interstate 84	I-84 at SR-2 Interchange ("Mixmaster East")	140,500	2,825
New Haven-Meriden	Fairfield, CT	Interstate 95	I-95 at US-7 Interchange	146,300	806
New Haven-Meriden	New Haven, CT	Interstate 91	I-91 at US-1 Interchange	93,900	1,539
New Haven-Meriden	New Haven, CT	Interstate 95	I-95 at US-7 Interchange	139,600	1,484
Hartford-Middletown	Hartford, CT	Interstate 84	I-84 at SR-2 Interchange ("Mixmaster East")	140,500	2,825
New Haven-Meriden	Fairfield, CT	Interstate 95	I-95 at US-7 Interchange	146,300	806
New Haven-Meriden	New Haven, CT	Interstate 91	I-91 at US-1 Interchange	93,900	1,539
New Haven-Meriden	New Haven, CT	Interstate 95	I-95 at US-7 Interchange	139,600	1,484

Massachusetts
Urban Area	County	Route	Location	Vehicles/Day	2002 Delay (Thous. Hours)
Boston	Norfolk, MA	Interstate 93	I-93 at I-95 Interchange	180,594	2,565
Boston	Norfolk, MA	Interstate 95	Worcester Rd at I-95	166,564	1,713
Boston	Suffolk, MA	Interstate 93	Columbia Rd at I-93	181,560	2,645

Rhode Island
Urban Area	County	Route	Location	Vehicles/Day	2002 Delay (Thous. Hours)
Providence	Providence, RI	Interstate 95	I-95 at I-195 Interchange	256,000	15,340
Providence	Kent, RI	Interstate 95	I-95 at Route 4 Interchange	173,700	719

Winter Driving Tips

 

Nine Winter Driving Tips For Truckers

 

There are no secrets when it comes to winter driving. If the outside air temperature is at or below freezing, and there's snow falling on the road, winter is at it's most dangerous. A driver who chooses to zoom along at normal road speed when everyone else is crawling along at 15 to 20 MPH doesn't have the inside track on the winter roadways. There's a good chance you'll see him and his rig in the median a few miles up the road. 

 

The following nine tips will help you reduce the odds of an accident during this chilly season.

 

 

Tip #1 Get yourself ready.

 

Get your rest. Load up your rig with survival gear- cell phone and charger, blankets, water, ready to eat food, extra boots, gloves, socks, and matches. You should be dressed in layers to preserve body heat.  Remember- if you get stuck in the middle of nowhere during winter conditions, you will only have your self and your supplies to get you through a crisis.

 

Tip #2 Get your truck ready.

 

Make sure your tires have the grip to pull you through poor driving conditions. Make sure your defroster and wiper blades are ready to clear your windshield. Clean you head light and tail light lenses so others can see you in poor visibility conditions. Keep your fuel tanks as close to full as possible, and make sure your diesel fuel has an anti-gel additive. Take care of your engine and braking systems- failure in either can put your life at risk.

 

Tip #3 Keep an eye on the temperature.

 

Water freezes at 32 degrees. Roadways tend to be slightly warmer than the air temperature, but once air temperatures are down that low or lower, you need to be very wary.

 

Tip #4 Ice on your windshield means ice on the road.

 

Ice doesn't have to be packed up on the roadway to be dangerous. Thin sheets of ice formed just after sunset or just before sunrise can literally turn your world upside down.

 

Tip #5 Look for spray coming up from other vehicles.

 

If spray is coming off the tires, it's likely that the roads are wet (as opposed to ice covered), but keep in mind that a short stretch of road with ice on it can be just as dangerous as a ice packed roadway.

 

Tip #6 Listen.

 

If equipped with a CB, talk with the drivers around you, and listen to their advice. If you are a new driver, try to find a trucker who isn't talking a lot of big talk. Learn from their mistakes before you make one of your own.

 

Tune your trucks radio to a station that gives reliable weather and traffic updates.

 

Tip #7 Slow down and don't follow too close.

 

Traffic tends to bunch up on bad roads- the inclination is to follow other drivers. Maintain your "living room"- the space between you and the vehicle in front of you. Stay away from 4 wheelers- they are often under the illusion that the roads are safer than they actually are.

 

Tip #8 Watch for warning signs.

 

If there are cars in the median or shoulder, the roads are bad. If you start seeing trucks doing the same thing, it's time to get off the road and to a safe place.

 

Tip #9 There's no load worth your life.

 

If you are on dangerous roadways, you best bet is to find a safe spot to wait the weather or road conditions out. If you can't find a spot in a truck stop or other suitable haven, park on a ramp or anywhere out of the way. Try not to park on an incline- you're liable to get your self struck.

Why Is Night Driving So Dangerous for Truckers

 

Driving at Night

Traffic death rates are three times greater at night than during the day, according to the National Safety Council.

Why is night driving so dangerous? One obvious answer is darkness. Ninety percent of a driver's reaction depends on vision, and vision is severely limited at night. Depth perception, color recognition, and peripheral vision are compromised after sundown.

Older drivers have even greater difficulties seeing at night. A 50-year-old driver may need twice as much light to see as well as a 30-year old.

Another factor adding danger to night driving is fatigue. Drowsiness makes driving more difficult by dulling concentration and slowing reaction time.

Alcohol is a leading factor in fatal traffic crashes, playing a part in about half of all motor vehicle-related deaths. That makes weekend nights more dangerous. More fatal crashes take place on weekend nights than at any other time in the week.

Fortunately, you can take several effective measures to minimize these after-dark dangers by preparing your vehicle and following special guidelines while you drive.

The National Safety Council recommends these steps for truckers:

• Prepare your truck and trailer for night driving. Keep headlights, taillights, signal lights and windows (inside and out) clean.
• Have your headlights properly aimed. Mis-aimed headlights blind other drivers and reduce your ability to see the road.
• Don't drink and drive. Not only does alcohol severely impair your driving ability, it also acts as a depressant. Just one drink can induce fatigue.
• Avoid smoking when you drive. Smoke's nicotine and carbon monoxide hamper night vision.
• If there is any doubt, turn your headlights on. Lights will not help you see better in early twilight, but they'll make it easier for other drivers to see you. Being seen is as important as seeing.
• Reduce your speed and increase your following distances. It is more difficult to judge other vehicle's speeds and distances at night.
• Don't overdrive your headlights. You should be able to stop inside the illuminated area. If you're not, you are creating a blind crash area in front of your vehicle.
• When following another vehicle, keep your headlights on low beams so you don't blind the driver ahead of you.
• If an oncoming vehicle doesn't lower beams from high to low, avoid glare by watching the right edge of the road and using it as a steering guide.
• Make frequent stops for light snacks and exercise. If you're too tired to drive, stop and get rest.
• If you have a breakdown, pull off the road as far as possible. Warn approaching traffic at once by setting up reflecting triangles near your vehicle and 300 feet behind it. Turn on flashers and the dome light. Stay off the roadway and get passengers away from the area.

 

Observe night driving safety as soon as the sun goes down. Twilight is one of the most difficult times to drive, because your eyes are constantly changing to adapt to the growing darkness.

Winter Truck Maintenance

Every year, the transportation industry faces new perils during the winter months and this year is no different. Weather forecasters are predicting the winter of 2009-10 will be one of the coldest - and snowiest - in the last five years.

Breaking down during inclement weather can be extremely dangerous. Additional cold-climate challenges include fuel prices that are on the rise again and idling restrictions mandated by most states and many municipalities.

Here are nine simple tips to help you to maintain your equipment and fuel tanks during cold weather:

• Be sure you have treated bulk fuel tanks adequately for the temperatures you'll be dealing with. Think in terms of the coldest geographical location the truck will run to and treat accordingly.
• Block heaters aren't designed to warm an engine but rather to maintain heat already generated in the engine. It's crucial for the truck to be plugged in while its engine is still warm.
• Remind drivers to unplug the truck before starting it. Two to three seconds of the engine running while the block heaters are plugged in is enough to burn them out.
• Don't idle the trucks. You'll do more to cool a truck's engine by idling it coming off the road than by shutting it off. (Engine temperature rises approximately 18 degrees when it is shut off.) Conversely, starting a cold truck and letting it idle is futile. If you need to "warm" a truck that's been sitting, get in, drive it around the yard and "exercise" it once it has reached maximum oil pressure. That will warm the engine, transmission, differential and suspension - and could save both the driver and the organization from potential fines for idling.
• Remember to drain air tanks and fuel/water separators. As ambient air temperatures fall, water's ability to condense in fuel tanks increases and can be carried into the filter/heater unit. During periods of extreme cold, draining should be done daily. The fuel filters are the only protection the engine has against fuel contaminants. A larger-micron fuel filter should never be used to extend filter life or increase flow, as it might void the warranty - and can damage the pump and/or injectors.
• When the equipment isn't in use, be sure air hoses are hooked up to each other or, if so equipped, to the dummy gladhands. Failure to do so is a leading cause of brakes freezing up.
• If moisture is present in an air-line, use one capful of brake-line antifreeze only in the emergency (red) side. Never put it in the blue side, or you could cause the brakes to lock up. Use only company-supplied brake-line antifreeze, as there are many other products available that could damage the internal brake system.
• Be sure gladhands hook up tightly. If they're too loose, they'll come off in a tight turn and cause unnecessary cycling of the air compressor. Make sure you have a snug fit.
• Finally, the best tip for proper fuel system management in cold weather is to increase drivers' awareness - and hold them accountable for their actions or inactions.

Michael Buck
President
MCB Fleet Management Consulting