Large-truck occupant deaths, injuries increase: study

Washington – Fatalities and injuries among large-truck occupants in 2011 increased 3 percent and 1 percent, respectively, from the previous year, according to a study (.pdf file) from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis.

Among other findings:

• Overall fatalities from crashes involving large trucks increased 2 percent from 2010 to 2011, and overall injuries increased 10 percent.
• In 2011, 72 percent of fatalities involving large trucks occurred among occupants of other vehicles.
• About 1 percent of drivers of large trucks involved in a fatal crash had a blood-alcohol concentration at or above the legal limit, compared with 24 percent of passenger vehicle drivers and 29 percent of motorcyclists.
• Nearly 19 percent of large-truck drivers in a fatal crash had been convicted at least once for speeding, compared with about 18 percent of passenger vehicle drivers in a fatal large-truck crash.