Anyone noticing more frequent "bad" truck wrecks, lately?

This is a chart of the number of conveyances, road, air, water used in transportation of people goods and services in the US, compiled by the US Dept of Transportation:

http://www.rita.dot.gov/bts/sites/r...ansportation_statistics/html/table_01_11.html

It yields information like this:

Total # of motor vehicles on US highways in 1960: 74,430,800
Total # of motor vehicles on US highways in 2012: 253,639,000

The number of lane miles has increased by maybe 20% while the number of vehicles has more than tripled.
It stands to reason that the accident rate and severity has to increase in raw numbers, but in relation to vehicle miles traveled, the rate is actually lower, as are fatalities.
But the anecdotal evidence points to higher accident rates. That is why the State of GA just increased the budget for their truck enforcement agency by $40 million dollars over the next 4 years in reaction to the 5 nurses that were slaughtered on I-16 by an incompetent truck driver. The public demanded it, and we as the industry now get to put up with it.

 

i don't see how anyone can compare stats from today to 10 years ago.

10 years ago. people weren't texting and what not.

 

Because the topic was comparing 18 years of driving, and that was somewhere in the middle (when people were publishing more papers on truck safety). Apparently the conditions haven't changed much in the past decade on those compared, such as speed limits, vehicle types on the road, and driver behavior (other than more distracted drivers, perhaps).

 

Here's one from a couple years back:

"A total of 3,602 people died in large truck crashes in 2013. Sixteen percent of these deaths were truck occupants, 67 percent were occupants of cars and other passenger vehicles, and 15 percent were pedestrians, bicyclists or motorcyclists. The number of people who died in large truck crashes was 14 percent higher in 2013 than in 2009, when it was lower than at any year since the collection of fatal crash data began in 1975. The number of truck occupants who died was 31 percent higher than in 2009. Since 1979, when deaths in large truck crashes were at an all time high, there has been a greater percentage decline among occupants of large trucks (57 percent) than among occupants of passenger vehicles (43 percent).

Ninety-seven percent of vehicle occupants killed in two-vehicle crashes involving a passenger vehicle and a large truck in 2013 were occupants of the passenger vehicles.

Eleven percent of all motor vehicle crash deaths in 2013 occurred in large truck crashes.

Seventy-three percent of deaths in large truck crashes in 2013 were in crashes involving tractor-trailers and 29 percent were in crashes involving single-unit trucks. Some crashes involved both a tractor-trailer and a single-unit truck.

Sixty-six percent of large truck occupants killed in multiple-vehicle crashes in 2013 occurred in collisions involving another large truck.

Eleven percent of all passenger vehicle occupant deaths and 23 percent of passenger vehicle occupant deaths in multiple-vehicle crashes in 2013 occurred in crashes with large trucks.

Among vehicle occupants killed in large truck crashes, both the rate of passenger vehicle occupant deaths per truck mile traveled and the rate of large truck occupant deaths per truck mile traveled have declined substantially since 1975.

Sixty percent of deaths in large truck crashes in 2013 occurred on major roads other than interstates and freeways, 30 percent occurred on interstates and freeways, and 10 percent occurred on minor roads.

Fifty-one percent of large truck crash deaths in 2013 occurred from 6 a.m. to 3 p.m., compared with 30 percent of crash deaths not involving large trucks.

Sixteen percent of large truck crash deaths in 2013 occurred on Saturday and Sunday, compared with 37 percent of crash deaths not involving large trucks.

Forty-nine percent of large truck occupant deaths in 2013 occurred in crashes in which their vehicles rolled over. This was similar to the percentage of SUV occupant deaths (50 percent) and pickup occupant deaths (45 percent) that occurred in rollover crashes and much higher than the percentage of occupant deaths in cars (24 percent) involving rollovers.

Sixty-two percent of large truck occupant deaths in 2013 occurred in single-vehicle crashes, compared with 51 percent of passenger vehicle occupant deaths.

Nineteen percent of large trucks in fatal crashes in 2013 were involved in single-vehicle crashes; in contrast, 41 percent of passenger vehicles in fatal crashes were involved in single-vehicle crashes.

Forty-nine percent of fatally injured large truck drivers in 2013 were using safety belts, compared with 47 percent of fatally injured passenger vehicle drivers. Belt use was unknown for 20 percent of fatally injured large truck drivers, compared with 8 percent of fatally injured passenger vehicle drivers.

Thirty percent of passenger vehicle occupants killed in two-vehicle crashes with a large truck in 2013 were in head-on crashes with the truck. Eighteen percent involved the front of the passenger vehicle striking the rear of the large truck.

In contrast with passenger vehicle drivers, large truck drivers killed in fatal crashes rarely have high blood alcohol concentrations (BACs). Truck drivers are subject to strict government regulations concerning drinking and driving. Four percent of fatally injured large truck drivers in 2013 had BACs at or above 0.08 percent, down from 17 percent in 1982. For comparison, 33 percent of fatally injured passenger vehicle drivers in 2013 had BACs at or abve 0.08 percent, down from 51 percent in 1982."

About 1 in 10 highway deaths occurs in a crash involving a large truck.

 

I don't really understand why the DOT (or powers that be) like to say that "a disproportionately large number of accidents involve trucks" when 9 out of 10 don't (the most serious ones anyway). Obviously drivers of other vehicles are underregulated, or their laws aren't enforced well enough, by comparison, which probably causes a fair number of truck accidents in return.

I know, the logic would follow that if as many trucks were on the road, well there you go, but there aren't that many, and yet there remains a disproportionately large number of accidents not involving them (if regulation and enforcement is considered adequate in either case). My logic follows that if 9/10 accidents involve other vehicles, then around 9/10 accidents involving another vehicle and a truck are caused by the other vehicle(s).

I bet if we only had highly regulated trucks on the road, there would be about that many fewer accidents.

 

Kind of offended by that. I just started with a mega because I've been working for mom and pop companies for years and wanted a change of pace. It gets old being the go to guy constantly without the pay to match the bs. Especially in the wrecker business listening to whiny 4 wheelers, whiny truck drivers, and whiny cops every day for crap pay. I'm gonna just be a number now, and enjoy that for a while

 

I'm gonna just be a number now, and enjoy that for a while

People with mindset like you make me wanna cry

 

Why? Because we get tired of carrying the load of a company without proper pay? 5 other drivers and myself at my last tow company were doing 50% of the daily work. What were the other 17 doing? Stuff gets old quick. You let me know how you feel after running 18-20 hour shifts 7 days a week. Ok?

 

Have a device that renders ALL electronic devices that aren't hands free inoperable for ALL vehicles, even though I will get crap about this even just talking hands free on a phone DOES lower your attention span and reaction time.

It has gotten to the point that everyone seems to be doing everything in their vehicle EXCEPT driving.

On top of this for some unknown reason, the past couple of generations that have all grown up with video games and computers you would think would have better hand/eye control AND be able to judge speed and distance better since most of the games require this, yet, for the most part, they simply can not even merge with traffic correctly, how in god's green earth is this possible?

Now realize that the pool the trucking industry is pulling most of it's "drivers" from is no longer farm boys, equipment operators kids, or family loggers,, or any one else that grew up with a steering wheel in their hand, it IS all of the people that have been playing video games.

At least those are my observations.

 

Right on, KT!!!