A visual assistance device will be used on dump trucks and mixer trucks in the city to help drivers detect blind spots while driving, which is expected to help reduce the number of accidents, according to the Shenzhen traffic police.
A blind spot in a vehicle is an area around the vehicle that cannot be directly observed by the driver while at the controls.
The visual assistance system is similar to the video monitoring system that a driver uses when moving a vehicle in reverse. With a monitoring camera installed by the right rear wheel, drivers will be able to see the road conditions in their blind spots when changing lanes or turning their vehicles. The system can send out alarms if objects are detected in the blind spot, according to police.
Shenzhen reported 20 truck-related accidents that killed 22 people between January and June this year, seven more deaths than during the same period last year. Among the accidents, 60 percent — or 12 accidents — happened on the right side of the trucks, where drivers have blind spots when turning their trucks.
If a truck driver doesn’t have sufficient experience, fully consider the blind spots or observe the road conditions, traffic accidents can easily happen. The safety awareness of drivers and technical safety standards of vehicles are also major factors in accidents, according to police.
Statistics showed police caught a total of 125,215 dump truck violations in the first six months, a reduction of 25 percent over the same period last year.
Shenzhen Tianrun Earth and Stone Engineering Co. Ltd. was shamed for 6,356 dump truck traffic violations, an increase of 77.54 percent over the same period last year, and Shenzhen Zhongtianyuan Industrial Co. Ltd. was shamed for mixer truck violations that numbered 2,124 in six months, up by 92.56 percent over the same period last year.