Box Truck Accidents in Columbia | Box Truck Injury Lawyer

A box truck is a truck with a cube shaped cargo area and cab on a single chassis. A box truck is also known by other names such as straight truck, cube truck, cube van, bob truck, or box van. Box trucks range from about 13 to 23 feet in length and are used mainly by moving companies or rental companies like Columbia U-Haul and Columbia Ryder truck rentals. Box trucks are generally used to haul large items such as furniture, appliances, and large boxes.

Columbia Box Truck Accidents

It is not uncommon to see accidents involving box trucks in Columbia, MD. Columbia’s freeway system, which is made up of 739.3 miles of freeways and expressways in a ten-county metropolitan area, uses a hub-and-spoke freeway structure which is serviced by multiple loops.

Columbia’s freeway system is not managed by a single entity; rather it is managed by a partnership of four separate government agencies, instead. The partnership that monitors Columbia’s freeway system is called Columbia TranStar, which is responsible for providing emergency management services and transportation to the area. Columbia TranStar was first opened in April, 1996 and was the first organization in the U.S. to combine transportation and emergency management functions under the same purview. Columbia TranStar was also the first to leverage the resources of four separate agencies by bringing them together into one consortium:

• Maryland Department of Transportation
• Howard County
• The Metropolitan Transit Authority of Howard County
• The City of Columbia

Columbia TranStar incorporates state-of-the-art technologies to reduce congestion on major roadways and is able to make the claim that they lead the nation in freeway incident management. At the TranStar center they are able to access over 730 regional Closed Circuit Television Cameras (CCTVs) to monitor traffic incidents. They are also equipped to dispatch vehicles to remove debris or hazardous materials or be able to send tow trucks to remove stalled vehicles. The center is also has the capability to communicate directly with emergency vehicles and provide the most direct routes to an accident scene. Columbia TranStar also deploys Dynamic Message Signs (DMS), from their center. The DMS informs travelers about expected travel times and other traffic issues which may lie ahead. Columbia TranStar also uses an assortment of technologies help keep the region’s traffic moving such as synchronized traffic signals, speed sensors, Highway Advisory Radio, ramp meters and other devices.

Columbia Box Truck Accident Lawyers Need to Assess Cause

In many cases, Columbia truck accident attorneys must retain the services of scientific and medical experts to prove both the cause of the accident and the cause of your injuries. Additionally, a qualified 18-wheeler accident lawyer will obtain all kinds of evidence concerning the scene of the crash, truck logs, and other important information to be used against the trucker, trucking company, or the company’s insurer. Arranging expert witness testimony and preparing important physical and documentary evidence is just one of many ways a Columbia tractor trailer injury lawyer can help you after you’ve suffered a truck accident injury for a major commercial vehicle wreck.

If you or a loved one have been involved in a serious box truck wreck, semi crash or big rig accident, hiring a lawyer is the farthest thing from your mind when tragedy such as this strikes you, a family member, or a friend. However, this is when you need a Columbia truck accident lawyer most. Do yourself a favor by calling one of the qualified Columbia truck accident lawyers listed on this page. Hire a qualified Columbia tractor trailer accident lawyer to help protect your rights.

Box Truck Cargo Area Susceptible to Overloading and Load Shifting

Although the cargo area and cab of a box truck both sit on the same chassis, the cargo area is usually completely enclosed and separate from the cab. However, some box trucks have a cargo area that is joined to the cab and in some of these models; the cargo area can be accessed from within the cab.

The cargo area in a box truck is just as susceptible to overloading and load shifting which could lead to an accident on a Columbia highway, for example, Interstate 45 runs north and south and Interstate 10 runs east and west crossing each other right thorough the center of downtown Columbia. Then there are two roads that ring the city, the Sam Columbia Tollway on the outer ring and the North Loop West Freeway, North Loop East Freeway, East Loop Freeway, South Loop Freeway and Interstate 610 forming the west loop of the inner ring.

Columbia Truck Rental Companies Offer Box Trucks

There are many U-Haul and Ryder Truck Rental locations in and around Columbia, MD and many of them offer box trucks. Following is a partial list of Columbia U-Haul and Columbia Ryder Truck Rental locations:

Box Trucks Large and Small

A “box van” would be a smaller type of box truck because it would use a van cab similar to a family passenger van. A box van would also be built on a van chassis similar to a common 1/2-ton to 3/4 ton commercial vans.

Larger box trucks would have a bigger cab and use a heavier truck chassis built for heavier load capacities such as a 5-ton or 6-ton box truck.

Vehicle makers such as Ford, Chevrolet and International are manufacturers of box trucks.

Overhead Cargo Area

Some box trucks have an overhead compartment that extends the cargo area over the roof of the cab. The overhead cargo feature is commonly found on box trucks available from U-Haul such as their 14’ truck, 17’ truck, 20’ truck, 24’ truck and 26’ truck. All of these models are configured with an overhead cargo area that they call “Mom’s Attic®”.

The overhead cargo area feature has some advantages over regular box truck designs. It provides extra storage space above the cab and it allows movers to isolate more fragile items from regular cargo.

Box Truck Accident Attorneys Serve Columbia and Surrounding Cities

Serving clients throughout Central Maryland, including Aberdeen, Alexandria, Annapolis, Arlington, Arnold, Aspen Hill, Baltimore, Bowie, Catonsville, Cockeysville, College Park, Columbia, Dublin, Dundalk, Edgewood, Eldersburg, Elkton, Ellicott, Essex, Fallston, Forest Hill, Franklinville, Frederick, Glen Burnie, Green Valley, Hagerstown, Hampstead, Laurel, Lisbon, Middle River, Milford Mill, Mount Airy, Olney, Parkville, Perry Hall, Randallstown, Severna Park, Silver Spring, South Gate, Tannytown, Thurmont, Towson, Walkersville, Washington DC, Westminster, Wheaton, areas in the vicinity of BWI Airport, and other communities in Howard County.

Columbia box truck accident attorneys are experienced in handling serious injury truck collision cases and can help you fight the trucking company or its insurer in order to get you the compensation you deserve. Contact a Columbia box truck accident lawyer today for a FREE INITIAL CONSULTATION.