Be aware of challenges to safe driving faced by semi drivers going through McHenry

Most semi drivers are trying to be safe but

safe driving needs to extend to the drivers
of automobiles, too. Those big rigs can't
stop as quickly and they pack a big punch.

The big rigs that drive through McHenry on a daily basis are long and heavy – up to 80,000 pounds and 53-foot trailer. With the truck and trailer combined, the length can come to 70 or 80 feet.

How does that compare to a car, pickup or SUV?

The average SUV weighs about 3,500 pounds with a sedan coming in a little less than that. A pickup truck can average about 5,000 pounds. That means that a full semi and trailer weighs 16 times as much as the average pickup truck.

A 2025 Chevy Impala is just over 16-and-a-half feet long. The semi and trailer can be almost five times that length. The 2025 Impala weighs just over 3,527 pounds. The semi and trailer can weigh more than 22 times as much.

What does this mean for you when you’re driving down Richmond Road on your way to Ringwood? It means that there are some substantial vehicles in traffic for you to take into account to stay safe on your trip.

One factor is that a semi-truck hinged to a 53-foot trailer doesn’t have the maneuverability you have in your Rav4. You don’t want to put the semi driver in a position of trying to match you turn-for-turn.

Another factor is that it takes considerably more braking power and pavement for a semi and trailer to come to a stop.

Semi drivers often have cars, trucks and SUVs cutting in front of them. Often, this occurs when the driver of that car, truck or SUV wants to get in front of the semi and trailer at a stop light.

The driver of the semi had already calculated when to start braking, and how hard to apply the airbrakes, before another 17-feet of vehicle occupied the lane in front of them. Now they have to do some rapid recalculations. Hopefully, they have the necessary space to avoid slamming into the back of the four-wheeled passenger vehicle that cut in front of them.

The ability of a semi and trailer to safely reduce speed or stop is also critical when you consider pulling into traffic along Route 120. The speed limit is only 35 mph, which should help. But traffic is often going faster than that. Make no doubt about it, you don’t want your one-and-three-quarter-ton Impala to get hit by a 40-ton semi and trailer, especially while you or a loved one is in the seat where the impact will initially take place.

It's also important to know that a semi-driver doesn’t have the range of visibility you enjoy in your car, truck or SUV. They won’t necessarily see you trying to sneak by behind them. And when they take turns, they have to make wide turns so that the tires on the back of the trailer don’t run up over a curb or a car that has snuck up along side them.

Conscientious semi drivers are scrupulously taking into account the often random habits of drivers of passenger vehicles. But, no matter how much they try, there are always drivers who will test a semi driver’s ability to avoid accidents.

On the other hand, there’s no guarantee that every semi driver going through McHenry is half as diligent as they should be.

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