Truck drivers don’t slow down after getting off I-95 and fail to obey signs, causing accidents says Boca truck accident lawyer Joe Osborne.

Earlier this month a tragedy took place in Boca Raton. A tow truck driver, while trying to secure a crashed tractor trailer, fell 30 feet to his death from an Interstate 95 overpass. The tractor trailer overturned at an exit ramp notorious for truck accidents. Boca truck accident lawyer Joe Osborne says often these types of accidents are caused by negligent truck drivers.

There have been at least six major wrecks in the past five years near the Peninsula Corp. Drive overpass that leads to Congress Avenue in Boca Raton, reports the Sun Sentinel. According to the article,

“Drivers just aren’t slowing down when they leave the interstate,” (Florida Department of Transportation) FDOT Public Information Director Barbara Kelleher said…. “They’re not adhering to the signs and pavement markings or slowing down to make the turns safely.”

The truck left southbound I-95 when it failed to turn right, struck a concrete center median, veered left and overturned on its right side, resting on the bridge wall.

Richard Randolph, 69, from West Boca, who worked for Emerald Towing in Pompano Beach, went to the scene where he stepped over the bridge wall, onto a concrete maintenance platform on the outside of the overpass before falling off the edge of the overpass. It’s believed he was trying to secure the trailer. Randolph planned to retire in November when he turned 70 and move with his wife Judy to northern Florida. The two have ten children and 23 grandchildren.

The truck driver, Adrian Figueredo of Miami, was evaluated at the scene but not taken to the hospital. He was cited for fatigue, driving beyond the eleven hour limit in a fourteen hour period mandated for commercial truck drivers as well as failing to negotiate a right turn.

In August of last year a tractor trailer broke through the concrete barrier on the overpass and its cab hung above motorists traveling on I-95. The driver stated he thought he was entering an express lane, not an off-ramp, and was traveling about 65 mph at the time of the accident, reports WPTV.

Last March a tractor trailer crash occurred on Congress Avenue, closing the entrance ramps to I-95 in both directions for several hours, according to WPTV. Police reported the semi truck rear-ended a sedan as it was exiting southbound I-95 sending the sedan across a median. The truck hit the wall near the I-95 entrance ramp, preventing it from falling over the edge. The truck driver was cited for careless driving along with logbook and commercial driver's license violations.

FDOT plans to paint lane pavement with “exit lane only” messages and turn arrows by this summer. Signs will also be posted warning drivers to slow down; they are approaching a stoplight and the turn onto Peninsula Corp. Drive. Though signs can help prevent accidents they won’t do any good if truck drivers aren’t too tired to notice them or obey them.

If you or a loved one have suffered an injury caused by an accident involving a tractor trailer, contact Boca truck accident lawyer Joe Osborne at (561) 293-2600 or fill out this online contact form. You can discuss your case, how the law may apply and your best legal options to protect your rights and obtain compensation for your injuries.