Truck drivers can no longer trust Smokey reports to know when they’re being stalked by a Bear.
Washington State Patrol troopers – called Bears and Smokeys in CB radio slang – are using unmarked cars to ticket truck drivers, avoiding the all-seeing eye of the truckers’ expansive radio network.
“It’s good because you can work an area, and they never know if you’re there or not,” said Sgt. Randy Vranish, who oversees District 7’s commercial vehicle division from the patrol’s Marysville office.
“Most of the drivers are very professional in how they do it, but you always have a few that are pushing the envelope.”
Trucks are less likely to be in accidents in Washington than anywhere else in the country, partly because of the unmarked cars, according to a study released by the American Transportation Research Institute.
Troopers have ticketed an increasing number of truck drivers since they started using the unmarked cars in March 2004.
Statewide, troopers in 2003 gave truck drivers 16,256 speeding tickets and 1,196 tickets for following too close behind other vehicles. The next year, truckers received 18,448 tickets for speeding and 3,340 tickets for tailgating.
Last year, the first full year for the unmarked patrols, troopers wrote 19,098 tickets for speeding and 3,870 for following too close.
The number of citations issued for trucks illegally using the left lane on highways dropped from 2,259 in 2004 to 1,750 last year.
Longtime truck driver Henry Pascoe of Snohomish said some fellow drivers are slightly unnerved by the thought of unmarked patrol cars. Pascoe doesn’t mind them because he believes they make the highways safer.
“I have no qualms about it at all,” said Pascoe, 66. “It’s one of the tools we need, unfortunately.”
Troopers balance that aggressive enforcement with a friendly attitude toward truck drivers, Pascoe said.
“They look at things from a very professional point of view, and they look at the human side of it,” Pascoe said. “By doing that, they don’t back themselves into a corner.”
Truck traffic is heaviest in Snohomish County on I-5, Vranish said. The next-busiest road is U.S. 2, with many trucks picking up loads from gravel pits along the highway, he said.
The State Patrol also works to protect truck drivers from passenger cars.
When someone dies in an accident involving a big rig and a passenger car, the driver of the car is at fault 68 percent of the time, according to the transportation institute’s study.
People become annoyed about being stuck behind trucks, Vranish said. When they finally have room to pass, they often do so aggressively, darting back too close in front of the truck.
Sometimes troopers ticket aggressive drivers by riding along with truck drivers. They’ll capture aggressive drivers on film, then radio the drivers’ information to another trooper waiting farther up the highway.
Troopers have learned from the in-cab stings, Pascoe said.
“They’re amazed by how the cars whip around the rigs,” he added.
The patrol’s commercial vehicle division also inspects trucks for mechanical problems and to make sure their cargoes are properly loaded. Troopers interview drivers to make sure they are licensed, and they check drivers’ log books to see how many hours they’ve been driving.
Anything to cut down on accidents, Vranish said.
“We’re never happy with the numbers, but obviously, we’re doing better than the rest of the country,” Vranish said.
Reporter Scott Pesznecker: 425-339-3436 or spesznecker@heraldnet.com.
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