Officials and trucking school instructors in central Texas say that modern trucking school standards are contributing to the recent string of deadly wrecks on Interstate 35. 

In the last two weeks, two multi vehicle wrecks have claimed the lives of six people on Interstate 35 in central Texas, and those in trucking and law enforcement agree that part of the problem stems from modern truck driver training standards. 

“The problem is, these accidents don’t surprise me,” said Steven Howard, a truck driver and CDL instructor in central Texas. “That’s the scary thing about it — with the current standards that we have in training and truck driving, these are going to continue to happen and get worse if there’s not reform in the industry.”

“You’ve got these people out here that don’t care. They don’t care about themselves — they don’t care about the value of human life. We are putting them out here on the roadways with minimal training. It’s a recipe for disaster,” Howard continued to ABC 25. “I’m hoping that the FMCSA stands up with common-sense regulations in these matters. Not something that burdens the people who are doing right, but something that cracks down on the companies and individuals that are doing wrong.” 

Sgt. Bryan Washko with the Texas Department of Public Safety says that officers with the Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Unit are doing what they can to crack down on drivers operating unsafely, but the only way to improve safety on the road is to start at the beginning – modern truck driver training. 

“Unfortunately, it’s a reality in my line of work. We never get used to seeing them [crashes]. We do our best to prevent them, but we know the people whose lives are taken — that’s somebody’s family,” Washko said.

Multiple lawsuits have been filed in response to the I-35 crash involving a truck driver on CNS depressants. One suit names the trucking company, while the other names two construction companies responsible for the construction zone the accident occurred in. Both lawsuits also name the truck driver and Amazon. 

“Hopefully that by filing this lawsuit and getting justice for the family, a message is sent to all the 18-wheeler companies out there that the safety of our citizens is very important,” said attorney Domingo Garcia to News4SanAntonio, who is representing the family of a Grandmother killed in the accident.

“You can’t just throw somebody out there and don’t care about what happens to the safety of the public that’s out there carrying your merchandise.”