Residents of rural roads in Roanoke, Virginia and Catawba are becoming more and more concerned about speeding tractor trailers in their area. Most recently, a tractor-trailer overturned on Catawba Creek Road in Roanoke County.

According to a recent media reports, residents of Catawba are not surprised that the big rig overturned on the narrow country road. Residents said that they are becoming more concerned that the increased number of tractor trailers on these roads and how fast they are moving could lead to serious accidents, that could injure or kill someone.

One resident reported that he has been contacting the sheriff’s office and the county for several months, reporting that a greater number of big rigs are traveling these narrow roads at high speeds, especially 779 and 600 in Roanoke County. He noted that the trucks are probably going to the cement plant, and may be using local roads to avoid weigh stations on interstates.

VDOT was contacted recently about the issue, and a spokesperson stated that the number of trucks on the roads were not enough to lead to action by the state. But VDOT did note that the maximum speed limit on those roads is 45 MPH, and trucks should probably be going slower. If they are exceeding the speed limit, they are breaking the law and could be ticketed.

Our View

It may be legal for tractor-trailers to be using these rural, Roanoke County roads, but that does not mean that they should. The nature of many country roads in Virginia may make them unsuitable for large trucks. One of the lesser known problems of country roads is that some sections of the road may have dirt or gravel. This means there is much less traction. If the big rig needs to slow down suddenly, a serious accident could occur. Also, many Virginia country roads are winding and narrow. This makes them unsuitable for large trucks that are difficult to maneuver.

Our personal injury attorneys in Virginia have seen serious truck accidents on all types of roads, and accidents on country roads can be especially deadly. It also takes longer for first responders to get to the accident scene in these truck crashes.

And clearly, speeding by trucks on narrow country roads in the hills of Virginia is a very bad idea. This type of reckless driving by a big rig driver could lead to a very serious truck accident with death or serious personal injury, not to mention very expensive civil lawsuits.