Do Food Trucks Put Your Safety In Jeopardy?

Food trucks have definitely taken the culinary crowd by storm. After all, there’s something refreshing about being able to get delicious noshies for a good price right on the street. It makes us city folk feel like we’re taking a break from the more “high brow” customs that come with living in a metropolitan area (read: waiting for greasy Chinese food in your sweats at 2 AM). There has been some controversy surrounding whether or not food trucks should be subjected to the same grading system as restaurants, but lately we’re recognizing a whole different safety issue that has yet to receive much attention: food truck accidents.

Last April a food truck collided with another car in NYC, causing one of the propane tanks necessary for cooking to burst into flames. There have been several similar accidents in Los Angeles and Washington DC, where a propane tank exploded while a cook was working in the kitchen. The nature of food trucks makes them more dangerous than your typical car, since they have onboard flammable materials necessary for cooking food. Their placement on the side of the road also poses a heightened risk for accidents, which has us wondering, could customers also be at risk when it comes to the hazards involved with these mobile eateries?

We definitely don’t want to see the end of the food truck trend, but we’re starting to think that some actions should be taken to create regulations for where food trucks can park and how their materials should be kept. What do you think? Are you concerned that there are more risks to food trucks than we originally thought? Or do you chalk these accidents up to mere chance? Let us know what you think in the comments section below!