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A 70-year-old truck driver was traveling west on I-196 near Grandville, MI, driving a semi-truck carrying a pie when his truck crossed the median line and collided with a 2007 Chevy Tahoe. The truck slid to the edge of the overpass and both vehicles caught fire. The driver who stopped at the scene and Grandville police officers helped pull Robert Gortner, 82, from Tahoe. But his wife, a passenger, was trapped in a vehicle and Robert Osborne, 70, was trapped in his truck. Edna Gortner, 83, from Grand Rapids and Osborn from Macelona were both killed. An old passenger in Tahoe was killed with a truck driver. That was in September 2009. About a year earlier in July 2008 a 71-year-old truck driver on I-75 in Michigan crashed into a vehicle in the southern lane, causing the death of 19-year-old Kara Joan Larivee from Rochester Hills. The 71-year-old driver, who was already driving at high speed, failed to react quickly enough to the fact that traffic was stuck due to combining traffic. The second common denominator of the tragedy is that no accident was supposed to occur, no one was killed, and the two truck drivers were aged 70 or over. As a personal liability lawyer grieving with clients for unnecessary deaths from car accidents, I have argued in the past that truck-related deaths can be reduced by paying more attention to road safety and driver fatigue. In recent months I have become convinced that this effort must now involve a three-pronged approach - safer roads, less driver fatigue, and mandatory retirement age for truck drivers. The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration reports that as many as 4,000 Americans a year are killed in collisions with trucks that have caused thousands of safety violations, such as broken brakes, damaged tires, or dangerous loads exceeding the weight limit. Many truck drivers involved have little or no training, many are 65 or older, and many have a history of alcohol and drug abuse. Because Michigan does not allow applicable truck driver compensation, all truck drivers have immunity to liability. For that reason truck drivers who cause tragic accidents will continue to drive even if not trained, continue driving under the influence of illegal drugs or alcohol, and continue driving when age slows their dump truck hino reflexes and judgment. Truck accidents occur because of fatigue, road design errors, damaged equipment, and driver errors. Several causes can be predicted; others don't. However, the results are always predictable - the sliding volume of trucks that are driving 40 m.p.h. or faster will always make a mess. The biggest killer on our highways is fatigue. Federal transportation officials must make stricter guidelines to ensure that notebooks are properly stored and that commercial operators make sure their drivers get the rest they need between trips. State highway departments throughout the US must adopt an aggressive program to expand two-lane highways throughout the area so that high-speed travel is safer for all. Law enforcement officials must monitor our highways to enforce speed limits rather than tolerate drivers traveling 80 m.p.h. or higher.