8.3 Tank Vehicle Safe Driving Rules

8.3 Safe Driving Rules

In order to drive tank vehicles safely, you must remember to follow all the safe driving rules. A few of these rules are:

Driving Smoothly
• Drive smoothly. Because of the high center of gravity and the surge of the liquid, you must start, slow down, and stop very smoothly. Also, make smooth turns and lane changes.

Braking
• If you must make a quick stop to avoid a crash, use controlled or stab braking. If you do not remember how to stop using these methods, review Section 2.13. Also, remember that if you steer quickly while braking, your vehicle may roll over.

Shifting Cargo A Problem With Partial Loads
Tank drivers say that liquid cargo shifting is a problem with “anything other than full or empty.” This condition occurs when the driver makes sudden lane changes, takes evasive action, and on long downward curves. A prime location for this condition to develop is at freeway exit and entrance ramps.


Exit Ramps Especially Dangerous
This is how an accident can begin. A driver is making a right turn off a freeway onto a 25-mph ramp from the right lane, and is watching the “quitting time” traffic ahead and behind. He has the right turn indicator on, and gears down around 40-mph as he enters the off ramp traffic. He brakes slightly and is already eying the traffic stream he will be entering, which is proceeding under the freeway. The ramp traffic is slowing and he drops to a lower gear and applies a little more braking and then he feels the right side of the rig start to “float.” Then he remembers he has two empty middle compartments and two half-full ones, No. 1and No. 4. If he steers left to correct, he will jump the curve right into the underpass traffic. If he brakes sharply and stays in the ramp traffic, the leftward shifting of his load could be accentuated and eventually overturn the tank.
There is no text book solution, only time and whatever action the driver takes-and hope that the load shifting will be overcome by the weight of the tractor and trailer as rig speed is reduced.

Be Careful With Partial Loads
Even though full or empty runs occur much more frequently than partial loads, there is and will continue to be need for partial loads. The special handling requires full awareness at all times of the changes in vehicle characteristics that can be only accomplished by lower speed, more careful braking, load distribution and direction changes.

Slow BEFORE Turns
If you are already in the turn, it may be too late to slow down safely. Therefore, the best solution is to be especially watchful and slow down before entering the turn.

Stopping Distance
Keep in mind how much space you need to stop your vehicle. Remember that wet roads double the normal stopping distance. Empty tank vehicles may take longer to stop that full ones.

Skids
Don’t over steer, over accelerate, or over brake. If you do, your vehicle may skid. On tank trailers, if your drive wheels or trailer wheels begin to skid, your vehicle may jackknife. When any vehicle starts to skid, you must take action to restore traction to the wheels.


Safety First!
Jayson Zamora