Crashes

This chapter contains information on the circumstances of large truck crashes. Below is a summary of some of the information in this section:

• Of the 368,000 police-reported crashes involving large trucks in 2006, 4,321 (1 percent) resulted in at least one fatality, and 77,000 (21 percent) resulted in at least one nonfatal injury.
• Single-vehicle crashes made up 21 percent of all fatal crashes, 15 percent of all injury crashes, and 27 percent of all property damage only crashes involving large trucks.
• Just over three-fifths (62 percent) of all fatal crashes involving large trucks occurred on rural roads, and one-fourth (25 percent) occurred on Interstate highways.
• Thirty-four percent of all fatal crashes and 19 percent of all property damage only crashes involving large trucks occurred at night.
• The vast majority of fatal crashes (85 percent) and of nonfatal crashes (89 percent) involving large trucks occurred on weekdays (Monday through Friday).
• Collision with a vehicle in transport was the first harmful event in 76 percent of fatal crashes involving large trucks.
• Rollover was the first harmful event in only 5 percent of all fatal crashes involving large trucks and in only 2 percent of all nonfatal crashes involving large trucks.