Report on a rollover accident with a heavy goods vehicle on the E6 road in Vuddudalen, Levanger municipality on 24 May 2023
Road traffic report 2024/05
The accident involved an HGV carrying liquid cargo (lignin). The HGV consisted of a lorry with a tank and a trailer with a tank container. On a section of the road with several consecutive curves and at around the speed limit of the road, the lignin began to move in such a way that the lateral forces caused the trailer to overturn. The driver then lost control of the lorry causing it to overturn and hit the roadside guardrail of the oncoming traffic lane. The driver was fatally injured as a result of the accident. The investigation has shown that the safety level of the tank trailer was not sufficient for the cargo it was carrying. The tank on the trailer had a degree of filling of about 30%, and the tank consisted of a single large, open container. As a result of the investigation, the NSIA has identified a need to revise the regulations with regards to transport of liquid cargo.
On 24 May 2023, a heavy goods vehicle (HGV) was travelling southbound on the E6 road in Levanger. The vehicle, a lorry with a tank and a trailer (centre-axle trailer) carrying a tank container, was loaded with lignin – a binder for gravel roads. On the way down Vuddudalen, the trailer moved from side to side on a section of the road with several consecutive right and left curves. The vehicle was travelling at a speed of around 70 km/h, which was the speed limit of the road. The trailer overturned in the roadway in a left-hand curve, and the tank container hit the roadside guardrail and the rock cut to the right of the roadway. The trailer rollover caused the driver to lose control of the lorry so that it overturned and hit the roadside guardrail of the oncoming traffic lane. The driver was fatally injured as a result of the accident.
The investigation has not identified any technical faults in the lorry or trailer of significance to the accident. Nor was the curvature where the accident occurred in relation to the speed of the vehicle critical with regards to rollover. The trailer tank was loaded with lignin, which accounted for about 30% of the tank’s volume, and the tank consisted of a single large, open container. The temperature of the lignin indicates that it was fluid at the time of the accident. In the subsequent curves, the lignin began to move in such a way that the lateral forces caused the trailer to overturn in the roadway.
No specific requirements apply to the transport of liquids that are not dangerous goods (ADR) in the Regulations on the Use of Vehicles. The ADR regulations require tanks to be divided by partitions or surge plates when the filling degree is between 20 and 80 % of the tank volume. The investigation has shown that if the tank on the trailer had been divided by partitions or surge plates, or the degree of filling had been as specified in the ADR regulations, this would have reduced the movement of the lignin and the possibility for the trailer for overturning in the roadway.
The NSIA considers that the safety level of the tank trailer was not sufficient. This put the driver in a position where he alone had to handle the risk of rollover, with a tank trailer that did not have the necessary level of safety for the cargo it was carrying. Following the accident, Swerock AS has acquired a new trailer, a drawbar trailer with a fixed tank previously used in ADR transport with six separate compartments across the direction of travel.
As a result of the investigation, the NSIA issues one safety recommendation to the Norwegian Public Roads Administration to revise the Regulations on the Use of Vehicles with regards to transport of liquid cargo to reduce the risk of rollover accidents on roads.
The accident site. Photo: The Police
Published 02.07.2024
Safety recommendation
Safety recommendation Road No 2024/14T
The accident on the E6 road in Vuddudalen in Levanger on 24 May 2023 involved an HGV carrying liquid cargo (lignin). The HGV consisted of a lorry with a tank and a trailer with a tank container. The tank on the trailer had a degree of filling of about 30% of the tank’s volume, and the tank consisted of a single large, open container. On a section of the road with several consecutive curves and at around the speed limit of the road, the lignin began to move in such a way that the lateral forces caused the trailer to overturn. The investigation has shown that the safety level of the of the tank trailer was not sufficient for the cargo it was carrying. No specific requirements apply to the transport of liquids that are not dangerous goods (ADR) in the Regulations on the Use of Vehicles.
The Norwegian Safety Investigation Authority recommends the Norwegian Public Roads Administration to revise the Regulations on the Use of Vehicles with regards to transport of liquid cargo to reduce the risk of rollover accidents on roads.
Facts
| Location | E6, Vuddudalen, Levanger |
| Occurrence date | 24.05.2023 |
| Accident type | Tipped over in the roadway |
| Road class | European road |
| County | Trøndelag |
| Vehicle type | Truck and trailer |
| Type of Transportation | Freight transport |
| Accident category | Ulykke m/ kjøretøy over 7500 kg |