April 28, 2008 - Calif. Roadway a Recognized Danger Ten Years Before 34-Car Pile-Up

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More than a decade before the accident involving 34 cars that took place inside a curving and poorly lit tunnel last October, California state police had been warning of the dangers of that particular stretch of highway and urging the state to take measures to improve its safety.

Grooves were cut into the pavement in order to improve traction, but the speed limit inside the tunnel was raised from 45 to 55, and a police request to close the road during stormy weather was denied. California officials now face accusations that they contributed to the October pile-up by turning a blind eye to the road’s dangers.

One of the trucking companies involved in the crash has filed a lawsuit against the state. He called the highway “a recipe for disaster,” and said it was outdated the minute it was completed. Interstate 5 is a major west coast route, running between and .

Last October’s accident took place at a mountain pass just north of Los Angeles, and involved a car and 33 trucks. The cleanup and repairs totaled $17 million.

In the aftermath, state highway officials assured the public the road was safe.

Douglas Flailing, the regional director for California’s Department of Transportation, said at the time that officials were unaware of any concerns regarding the road and assured the public of its safety.

Attorneys for the victims and freight companies assert, however, that such an assessment was, and is, incorrect. They claim that the road has a notorious reputation among truckers and locals for being dangerous. Claims filed against the state of California depict the tunnel as dangerously dark and poorly designed, with too few warning signs and a speed limit that invites catastrophe.

One truck driver, who escaped after his rig was rear-ended in the pileup, said the tunnel’s abrupt curve made it impossible for oncoming truckers to see the danger after the first rig crashed near its exit.

The tunnel was repaired, and reopened a month after the disaster. White concrete now increases illumination, 500 computerized lights create a noontime-like brilliance inside, and flashing signs mark the entrance. In addition, the tunnel’s speed limit was lowered back to 45 mph.

In 1996, the same year that the California Highway Patrol first asked that the tunnel be routinely closed during rainstorms, state maintenance supervisor Charles Payne wrote a letter urging engineers to review speeds and road conditions. "It is my concern that if these issues are not addressed immediately, that a major incident will happen with possible loss of life," he wrote.

From 1996 to 2006, traffic in both directions on the busy stretch of highway increased by 32 percent, averaging 281,000 vehicles each week.

In an interview, Flailing called the highway’s rate of serious collisions (those involving serious injuries and fatalities) “slightly below average,” although its overall accident rate on that stretch of roadway is higher than that of the rest of the state.

Flailing also said that the statistics, the accident records, “everything” showed that the roadway was safe, and that had there been any doubt, changes would have been made.

The California Highway Patrol’s investigation of the October 12^th accident is ongoing, but whatever the official cause is determined to be, it is certain to have a powerful effect on claims against the sate, and could cost California millions of dollars. The pileup is believed to have started with a tractor-trailer that went out of control and crashed as it was exiting the tunnel.

Wreckage from the crash was spread over half a mile, and motorists were sent running for their lives from the 1,400-degree fire.