Related: Fleets Make Streets Safer with Vision Zero Initiative
Philadelphia’s Refuse Drivers Have High Crash Rates
The City of Philadelphia’s trash truck drivers have been involved in about 2,200 collisions since June 2015. Two-thirds of these were the city drivers’ fault.

Photo via Pixabay
The City of Philadelphia’s trash truck drivers have been involved in about 2,200 collisions since June 2015. Two-thirds of these were the city drivers’ fault, but the city won’t demote or fire drivers involved in multiple collisions, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported.
The city released a Vision Zero plan in 2017 and has equipped more than 60 sanitation trucks and street sweepers with 360-degree cameras and guardrails. Still, a sanitation official said the trucks won’t be accident-free because of tight streets and the nature of the work.
The union president said driving a trash truck through small city streets and avoiding motorists and parked cars is like driving through a maze. Additionally, the trucks are often packed beyond capacity to eliminate the need to return to the dump often, the newspaper reported.
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