Update on I-16 accident

Chris Rossmann

The name of the man who caused the accident that killed five Georgia Southern nursing students last week has been confirmed by the Georgia State Patrol.

According to WSBTV in Atlanta, John Wayne Johnson, 55, of Shreveport, Louisiana drove for the trucking company Total Transportation out of Mississippi. The company has over 900 drivers and 740 vehicles, and has been hit with 266 unsafe driving violations in the last two years.

· 107 speeding violations

· 45 violations for not following traffic control devices

· 9 violations for driving while using a cellphone

· 5 for following too closely

Federal records show that only 10 percent of comparable U.S. trucking companies have worse safety records.

“Shocking. This company should have been severely curtailed in their operations by the authorities,” Bob Cheeley, transportation safety specialist attorney, told WSBTV.