Focus in wrong place?
New figures from the federal government show an increase in traffic fatalities involving large trucks, prompting safety groups to reach conclusions that are not supported by the limited scope of the data.
According to the latest crash data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, there were 716 fewer traffic fatalities in 2022, a 1.7% decrease from 43,230 in 2021. Although traffic deaths fell in most categories, there was a significant increase in the number of truckers killed in vehicle crashes.
In 2022, nearly 6,000 people were killed in crashes involving large trucks, a 2% increase from the previous year. Among those killed, nearly 1,100 were occupants of a large truck, an 8.5% increase. Of those truck drivers, traffic fatalities involving single-vehicle crashes rose 5%, while multi-vehicle crashes went up 13%.
Injuries as a result of crashes involving large trucks went up nearly 4%, with a more than 5% increase in injuries of people outside the truck. However, injuries of occupants inside large trucks decreased by less than 1%.
It is worth noting that NHTSA defines “large trucks” to include both commercial and noncommercial trucks with a gross vehicle weight rating of more than 10,000 pounds. That includes everything from large pickups like the Ford F-350 to Class 8 tractors.
NHTSA’s overview of traffic crashes in 2022 does not break down large truck crashes by vehicle class. However, the agency’s Fatality and Injury Reporting System tool does and includes data from 2022. According to that data, more than 6,100 Class 3-8 vehicles were involved in fatal crashes in 2022. Of those, nearly two-thirds were Class 8 trucks.
As a percentage increase compared to the previous year, smaller large trucks had a worse year in 2022. In terms of the number of vehicles involved in fatal crashes, there was a 6% increase in Class 3 trucks, a 6.5% increase in Class 4 trucks, a 3% increase in Class 5 trucks and a 6% increase in Class 6 trucks. The number of Class 7 trucks involved in fatal crashes dropped by 7%. Meanwhile, the number of Class 8 trucks involved in fatal crashes rose by only 1.5%.
Across the board, traffic fatalities were down. Passenger vehicle occupant deaths dropped by 4%. That included decreases in fatalities in rollovers (minus 4%), ejections (minus 8%) and unrestrained occupants (minus 5%).
Traffic fatalities involving certain key driving behaviors were also down. Distracted driving fatalities were down 6%, speeding-related fatalities dropped by 3% and alcohol-impaired-driving deaths decreased by less than 1%.
A lack of seat belt use played a significant role in traffic fatalities. Among passenger vehicle occupants killed in 2022, half were unrestrained. Of passenger vehicle occupants who survived a fatal crash, only 14% were not wearing a seat belt.
Data does not determine fault
There have been various studies that have looked into fault in large-truck-involved crashes, and they all came to the same conclusion: Truckers are not at fault in the vast majority of crashes.
In 2021, the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration revealed numbers indicating that more than 90% of truckers involved in fatal crashes did not receive a moving violation. In 2017, the Ohio Department of Transportation said truckers are not to blame in 75% of fatal crashes. A report analyzing studies by the University of Michigan, NHTSA, AAA and FMCSA found that passenger vehicle drivers were assigned driving factors in fatal crashes involving large trucks at an extraordinarily higher rate than truckers.
The last time the federal government looked deeper into truck crashes was in 2006, with the Large Truck Crash Causation Study. In addition to being significantly outdated, the flawed study focused on pre-collision events rather than determining fault. FMCSA is scheduled to update that study with its Crash Causal Factors Program heavy-duty vehicle report in 2029.
Despite a consensus among relevant studies that truckers are mostly not responsible for traffic fatalities involving large trucks, safety groups are using NHTSA’s broad crash data to support regulations that could, ironically, make the nation’s highways more dangerous.
On the same day NHTSA released the crash data, the Truck Safety Coalition issued a press release urging the Department of Transportation to implement a variety of truck regulations, including:
- A mandate of automatic emergency braking (AEB) and advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS)
- A mandate of rear/side underride guards
- A finalized speed limiter rule
- A requirement for increased minimum insurance
In the case of AEBs, false activations have caused trucks to stop in the travel lane for no reason. NHTSA currently has an investigation open looking into false AEB activations on certain Freightliner and Western Star trucks.
The effectiveness of side underride guards has been brought into question by NHTSA’s Advisory Committee on Underride Protection. The validity of the agency’s cost-benefit analysis is also under scrutiny.
Large speed differentials between trucks and other vehicles have proven to be dangerous as they cause more vehicle interactions, increasing the chance of a crash. A bill in Congress, the DRIVE Act, would prevent a speed limiter mandate.
As for raising insurance minimums, the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association has said that “there is absolutely no data to demonstrate that raising minimums would improve safety in any way.” Existing minimums cover costs in more than 99% of cases, according to the Association.
Truckers can contact their lawmakers to support efforts to prevent speed limiters and higher insurance minimums by going to FightingForTruckers.com. LL