Our Lake Jackson truck accident lawyers respond that many of the dump trucks you see every day in Texas urban settings have tandem axles. On a tandem axle truck, these tandem axles are situated close together so that the truck can distribute its weight over the tandem set rather than relying on just a single axle to bear the full weight load. This means that the dump truck can carry a heavier load.

Our Lake Jackson truck accident lawyers emphasize that a “tandem” dump truck weighs about 25,000 pounds and can carry around 14 to 16 tons. Some dump truck owners add a third “lift” axle to bring the load carrying capacity up around 18 to 20 tons. The more axles a dump truck has, the more money the owner generally gets paid per hour.

A tri-axle truck can haul much more in the same number of trips as a tandem axle. And a quad-axle can carry even more than the tri-axle, so the dump truck owner makes more per trip. Note: in many cases, the dump truck owner and driver are the same person. Quite a few dump truck companies consist of an owner and his truck. Some owners install another “drop” axle on a tri-axle to make it a quad-axle and thereby make more money. With each additional axle to distribute the load, they can haul more.

The dump trucks you see working on Texas highway jobs are usually quad-axle trucks. They can haul around 22 to 24 tons. The weights they can carry are somewhat limited by the government bridge weight limits set to minimize large trucks’ impact on roads and infrastructure.

A fully-loaded quad-axle dump truck might weigh about 36 tons altogether. So you can probably understand why a passenger car impact with a dump truck can cause so much damage or why dump truck-pedestrian collisions are generally fatal.

If you’ve been injured in an impact with a dump truck, you need experienced and dedicated legal help to obtain the financial compensation you need following your catastrophic accident. Contact our dedicated Lake Jackson truck accident lawyers for a free and confidential legal consultation. We’ll help you understand your various legal options after the accident, the steps you need to take to make a recovery, and your potential case outcomes. Call us today toll free at 877-307-9500. Or schedule your free consultation through our online contact form. Our goal is to help you minimize the financial burden of your dump truck accident and to win the full monetary recovery you deserve for the harm you’ve suffered.