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October 11, 2000 10:18 AM, EDT

How does a person who has never operated a big rig handle an 18-wheeler?

	Carnegie Mellon
	Reporter Margaret Gordetsky sits high in the cab as she tries her hand at the 18-wheel simulator at the institute’s center in Lemont Furnace, Pa.

I found out with the help of a truck driving similator — very carefully, and mostly in fifth gear.

Having already seen another simulator, I had likened it more to an expensive video game than a realistic training tool. But the Thomson CSF Trust 800 simulator at Carnegie Mellon Driver Training and Safety Institute facility in Lemont Furnace, Pa., was a bit more than I had bargained for.

Daniel Westra, director of research, who is evaluating the use of the simulator to train truck drivers, told me that students need to become “immersed” in the experience.

I was skeptical, but it proved to be difficult not being immersed in this marvel.

For the full story, see the Oct. 9 print edition of Transport Topics. .