Crash fatalities involving large trucks rise again
Posted June 25, 2019
Fatalities from crashes involving at least one large truck are expected to rise about 3 percent in 2018, according to data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).
Preliminary reports indicated that while traffic fatalities for 2018 are projected to be down about 1 percent from 2017, the fatality rate for crashes involving at least one large truck are projected to rise 3 percent.
The upward trend in truck fatalities is a continuation from the 2017 Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) information that showed a 9 percent increase in deaths involving at least one large truck. A large truck as defined in the FARS report is a medium or heavy truck, excluding buses and motor homes, with a gross vehicle weight rating of more than 10,000 pounds.
A total of 37,133 people died as a result of traffic fatalities in 2017. That number is projected at 36,750 for 2018. Updated fatality counts will be revised later this year when the final file for 2017 and the annual reporting file for 2018 become available.
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