Waste & Recycling Industry Supports West Virginia Legislation Encouraging Cautious Driving Near Sanitation Trucks
“Slow Down to Get Around” law would increase penalties, aims to prevent accidents and injuries to collection workers
WASHINGTON, February 20, 2014 /3BL Media/ — The National Waste & Recycling Association (NW&RA) announced its support for legislation drafted by West Virginia State Sen. Donald Cookman (D-Hampshire) that would require all drivers in the state to slow down to 15 miles per hour when passing a stopped sanitation truck.
The bill, Senate Bill 378 or the “Slow Down to Get Around Bill,” is intended to prevent road accidents and fatalities around sanitation trucks caused by careless drivers, which are a major cause of fatalities to waste and recycling truck workers nationwide. A legislative hearing is scheduled today on this bill in Charleston, W.V.
Sen. Cookman pushed for these reforms after a driver struck and killed a constituent—Jeremy Tabler, a sanitation worker from Berkeley County—who was exiting his sanitation truck to collect garbage. Mr. Tabler is survived by his wife and two young daughters.
“We want to prevent such tragedies from happening. It’s critically important, for everyone’s safety, to slow down to get around garbage trucks,” said NW&RA's Vice President for Advocacy David Biderman. “We applaud Senator Cookman for proposing enhanced safety for motorists and for waste and recycling industry employees. Trash collection is a tough job with many challenges, and we want to honor the memory of Jeremy Tabler and be sure other workers return home safely to their families every night.”
West Virginia’s reforms echo calls for greater road safety nationwide. Similar laws have passed in Alabama, Michigan and Wisconsin. NW&RA has championed safety for years with its “Slow Down to Get Around” national campaign, which reminds motorists to drive more carefully near solid waste collection vehicles.
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About the National Waste & Recycling Association
The National Waste & Recycling Association represents nearly 800 companies operating in the United States. Its members conduct business in all 50 states and include companies that collect and manage trash, recycling and medical waste; equipment manufacturers and distributors; and a variety of other service providers.
NW&RA includes a number of institutes representing the interests of landfills, recycling and healthcare waste. It has a longtime partnership with Penton Media’s Waste360. The groups work together to organize WasteExpo, North America’s largest waste and recycling exposition and conference, in addition to other education offerings, products and services.
For more information about how innovation in the environmental services industry is helping to solve today’s environmental challenges, visit www.beginwiththebin.com
