FOR THE BOOKS. A SEMI TRAILER NEARLY IN PIECES. YEAH, IT WAS ON THE WAY FROM OMAHA TO CHICAGO WHEN A TROOPER PULLED IT OVER NEAR DES MOINES. TROOPERS IN NEBRASKA SAY IT’S NOT SURPRISING THEY TOOK THOUSANDS OF COMMERCIAL TRUCKS OFF THE ROADS LAST YEAR. KETV NEWSWATCH 7 ABBIE PETERSEN INVESTIGATES. THIS IS NOT WHAT YOU WANT TO SEE PASSING YOU BY ON THE INTERSTATE. IOWA TROOPERS SHARED THE PHOTOS. A CEMETERY. JUST BARELY HOLDING IT TOGETHER IN ALTOONA. IT’S REALLY DISTURB BEING THAT SOMEONE THAT IS A PROFESSIONAL DRIVER, A HOLDER OF A COMMERCIAL DRIVER’S LICENSE WOULD TAKE TO THE HIGHWAY WITH A PIECE OF EQUIPMENT LIKE THAT. THAT’S KENT GRISHAM, PRESIDENT OF THE NEBRASKA TRUCKING ASSOCIATION NATION. HE SAYS EQUIPMENT LIKE THIS GOES AGAINST EVERYTHING THEY STAND FOR. THEY ARE TAUGHT IN THEIR DRIVING TRAINING FROM THE VERY BEGINNING ABOUT HOW TO DO INSPECTIONS ON THEIR EQUIPMENT. THE NEBRASKA STATE PATROL SAYS IT PUTS THE BRAKES ON DANGEROUS BIG RIGS EVERY YEAR. TROOPERS FOUND PLENTY OF PROBLEMS LAST SUMMER DURING THIS SURPRISING INSPECTION IN JULY. THEY TOOK 17 VEHICLES OUT OF SERVICE NEAR 210TH AND WEST CENTER THAT SAME MONTH IN YORK. THEY INSPECTED 65 VEHICLES. TROOPERS TOOK MORE THAN HALF OF THOSE OFF THE ROAD AND THEY FOUND NEARLY 200 VIOLATIONS. A.P. SAYS TROOPERS ARE TRAINED TO RECOGNIZE SITUATIONS THAT WOULD LEAD TO AN INSPECTION. WHICH IS A 37 STEP PROCESS AS THEY LOOK FOR EVERY THING FROM BLOWN TIRES TO BROKEN SPRINGS. SIZE AND WEIGHT FACTORED GREATLY INTO THE SERIOUSNESS IN A CRASH SITUATION. AND SO BASICALLY, WE WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT THE VEHICLES IN THE DRIVERS OF THESE LARGER COMMERCIAL MOTOR VEHICLES ARE OPERATING THEM AS SAFELY AS THEY CAN. IN THE SPAN OF ABOUT A YEAR, TROOPERS PERFORMED NEARLY 8000 VEHICLE INSPECTIONS. KNAPP SAYS IT TOOK ABOUT HALF OUT OF SERVICE. ANY TIME YOU IMAGINE THAT HALF OF THE VEHICLES ON THE ROADWAY HAVE SOME KIND OF A SERIOUS SAFETY ACT THAT WOULD REQUIRE US TO STOP, YOU, THAT PROBABLY IS A LITTLE DISCONCERTING. LUCKILY, LIEUTENANT MIKE MAYTHAM SAYS NOT ALL OF THESE VIOLATIONS LOOK LIKE THIS. NOT EVERY SAFETY VIOLATION IS SOMETHING WHERE THE WHEELS ARE LITERALLY FALLING OFF THE TRUCK. THERE ARE SIMPLE THINGS THAT CAUSE US TO STOP THOSE VEHICLES TO NSP ONCE, TO ADD IN SPITE OF THESE STATISTICS, THE MAJORITY OF CRASHES ARE NOT CAUSED BY VEHICLE FAILURE. THE MOST COMMON REASONS FALL ON THE DRIVER. SPEEDING. FOLLOWING TOO CLOSE OR DISTRACTED DRIVING. A.P. SAYS THREE FOURTHS OF THE TIME ACCIDENT ARE DUE TO POOR DRIVING BY A PASSENGER CAR, NOT THE COMMERCIAL MOT