Large trucks (semi-trucks, 18-wheelers, big rigs, tractor-trailers, etc.) that crash are often the cause of multiple fatalities, where not only the truck driver perishes but both the drivers and passengers in other motor vehicles are also killed in the truck accident. In fact, large truck crash injuries are often deadly, due not only to the size of the commercial vehicle in comparison to other vehicles on the road but also because of other factors, including the speed of each vehicle at the time of impact.
For more on large truck crashes in Indiana and Illinois, see our discussions in:
- Speeding and Serious or Fatal Semi-Truck Crashes in Illinois or Indiana
- Truck Crashes: Making the Roads of Indiana and Illinois Safer from Fatal Truck Accidents
- Fatal Truck Driver Crashes: Record-Breaking Trucker Fatalities According to New Studies
- Commercial Truck Safety and Truck Driver Fatigue: Fatal Truck Crashes, ELDs, and HOS Rules.
Two federal agencies study the dangers of commercial truck accidents in this country: the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Understanding the risks and dangers of a serious large truck crash on our roadways, both in Indiana and Illinois as well as the rest of the nation, is part of the duties assigned to FMCSA and NHTSA.
This is why it is so shocking for many to learn that the federal government has not conducted a study of Large Truck Crashes in over sixteen (16) years.
The 2003 Large Truck Crash Study
The last Large Truck Crash Causation Study (LTCCS) studied data covering truck accidents that happened between April 2001 and December 2003, involving commercial trucks with a gross vehicle weight rating exceeding 10,000 pounds. During this time period, 120,000 large truck crashes were reported, and from that total a sample was taken for study that involved 963 large truck crashes.
It was a big deal at the time. The federal government had never conducted a nationwide study of commercial truck crashes before 2003. From Data.gov:
The Large Truck Crash Causation Study (LTCCS) is the first-ever national study to attempt to determine the critical events and associated factors that contribute to serious large truck crashes allowing DOT and others to implement effective countermeasures to reduce the occurrence and severity of these crashes.
In this 2003 Large Truck Crash Study, researchers at FMCSA and NHTSA analyzed each large truck crash individually, to determinate the factors that contributed to the accident. Factors included:
- the number of motor vehicles involved in the crash;
- the time of day;
- the experience of the truck driver;
- the training of the trucker;
- the design of the large truck;
- failures of the truck components (e.g., tire blowout);
as well as external factors such as
- road hazards and
- highway conditions.
See: Craft, Ralph. The Large Truck Crash Causation Study-Analysis Brief. Publication FMCSA-RRA-07-017. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, Washington, DC, 2007.
2003 – 2019: Changes in Trucking Industry
However, consider today’s realities. Many things have changed in the past sixteen years.
Consider that in 2003, truck drivers were listening to Jennifer Lopez singing “Jenny from the Block;” watching Ruben Studdard win season two of American Idol; as Arnold Schwarzenegger was elected Governor of California and U.S. troops captured Iraq’s Saddam Hussein.
Meanwhile, it would be four years before any trucker could purchase an iPhone (they hit the market in 2007). Distracted driving was not such a big concern back then.
What about fatigue? As for Hours of Service (HOS) Rules, truck drivers in 2003 saw the first changes to driving time regulations since 1962.
That year, commercial truck drivers were held to 11 hours of driving within a 14-hour period, with 10 hours of rest mandated by FMCSA. They also saw the “34-hour restart” rule, where a trucker could get more driving hours (and income) by “resetting” their weekly 70-hour limit to zero if they didn’t get behind the wheel for 34 hours straight. See, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (May 2, 2000). “Hours of Service of Drivers; Driver Rest and Sleep for Safe Operations; Proposed Rule“. Federal Register. 65 (85): 25541–25611.
Call for New Federal Study of Large Truck Crashes
This month, the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA) has considered the sixteen (16) year time span since a detailed federal study of large truck crashes in this country, and formally asked Congress to spend the money to update this research. Specifically, the CVSA sent an official request to the Committee on Appropriations of the U.S. Senate.
Read the full text of the August 6, 2019, letter sent by CVSA Executive Director Collin Mooney to both the Chairman of the Senate’s Committee on Appropriations as well as the Chairman of the Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing, and Urban Development.
“The last large truck crash causation study was conducted from 2001-2003. Since that time, technology, drug usage and passenger and commercial motor vehicle safety features have drastically altered highway safety, and crash causation needs to be re-examined through a new study….
“A crash causation study identifies root causes of crashes, like distracted driving and poor mechanical fitness and maintenance, which can be targeted through education and enforcement programs. A crash causation study is necessary to collect essential, up-to-date root crash causation data to inform safety officials, policy makers and industry of crash trends.”
Need to Know Current Causes of Large Truck Crashes
The severity of injuries in any large truck crash usually results in death of at least one of the truck accident victims. These are preventable accidents all too often caused by things like speeding; improper maintenance or repair of the big rigs or semis; distractions; or driver fatigue caused by the need to meet delivery deadlines.
Regulators must understand the current circumstances surrounding large truck accidents and deaths resulting from these commercial truck crashes. The fact that there has been no comprehensive large truck crash study undertaken by the federal government in over a decade is unacceptable.
For those advocating for justice in the aftermath of deadly large truck crashes, it is clear that all too often more than one factor has contributed to the fatal accident. Understanding these causes is a precursor to regulating those responsible.
We look forward to the findings in an upcoming Large Truck Crash Causation Study by the federal government, in the hopes that it will result in safer roadways here in Indiana and Illinois. Please be careful out there!
