The State of Trucking Accidents: Key Statistics and Trends
Every year, thousands of lives are impacted by truck accidents, a growing concern on the nation's roads. The National Safety Council took a look at the statistics for large trucks – those weighing more than 10,000 pounds – and here’s what they found:
- In 2022, the latest year for which data is available, 5,837 large trucks were involved in fatal crashes. That’s an 1.8% increase from 2021.
- Large truck crashes represented 6% of all deadly crashes and 10% of total vehicle miles traveled.
- Fatal crashes involving large trucks have increased 49% in the last 10 years.
- When trucks collide with other vehicles, 70% of the deaths occur among occupants of the other vehicles.
- About 19% of truck occupants die in these crashes, and 11% of nonoccupants, e.g. pedestrians and bicyclists.
Where and when are these crashes occurring? More than half happen on rural roads and about a quarter on the interstate. A small percentage, 4.6%, occur in construction zones. The majority, 61%, happen during daytime hours, with the top months being September and October. Surprisingly, February had the lowest number of crashes.
Even when crashes are not deadly, there are injuries. There were 120,200 large truck injury crashes in 2022, a 2.5% increase from the previous year. Large truck crash injuries have increased 18% since 2016.
If you have been injured in an accident and suspect that it was due to negligence on the part of the other driver, a road flaw, or product malfunction in your vehicle, you might want to consider contacting a top Philadelphia trucking accident law firm to discuss your legal options. We are here to help you.