BALTIMORE, MD—Truck drivers across the country have named Baltimore motorists among the nation’s least courteous and most aggressive, ranking the city’s drivers as the 40th worst in America for unsafe habits around large trucks, according to a new national poll.
The survey, conducted by return-to-duty support experts American River Wellness, polled 3,015 truckers about common motorist behaviors that endanger semi-trucks. The results pinpointed aggressive habits as the biggest frustration in the Baltimore area, particularly along the heavily trafficked I-95 corridor.
Truckers cited a pattern of dangerous maneuvers by local drivers, including:
- Weaving aggressively across multiple lanes.
- Last-second cut-ins right before highway exits.
- Sudden braking in front of massive rigs.
- Lingering in blind spots while vying for position on crowded highways.
“Truckers are trained to expect the unexpected, but they can’t bend the laws of physics,” said Graham Sargent of American River Wellness. “When motorists crowd a semi, they’re not just making life harder for drivers – they’re putting everyone on the road at risk.”
A fully loaded semi-truck can weigh up to 80,000 pounds and requires significantly more distance to stop than a passenger vehicle. This, combined with massive blind spots, makes maintaining a safe buffer vital for accident prevention.
While Baltimore ranked 40th, New York City, Los Angeles, and Atlanta topped the list as the three most difficult cities for truckers to navigate safely. Baltimore was the only Maryland city mentioned in the extensive national ranking.
The city’s ranking reflects a confluence of factors, including heavy commuter congestion, constant construction zones, and major freight traffic moving in and out of the port, which collectively create one of the toughest environments for semis in the Mid-Atlantic region.
Across the national survey, the most cited dangerous maneuver was last-second cut-ins (36%), followed by speeding past a truck only to slow down (28%), and lurking in blind spots (21%). Distracted driving remains a primary concern, with a striking 70% of truckers naming texting and phone use as the biggest danger when cars are nearby.
The poll also highlighted simple courtesies that help: 27% of truckers praised drivers who stay out of blind spots, and 26% appreciated those who leave extra space in front of the truck.
Additional information can be found online at American River Wellness here.
Photo via Pixabay
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