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# Tractor-Trailer Crashes Continue to Climb: Staying Safe on the Road
- URL: https://www.legalexaminer.com/lestaffer/transportation/26/
- Published: 2019-07-25T16:22:14.000Z
- Updated: 2019-07-25T16:22:14.000Z
- Description: Though any traffic crash can be dangerous, those involving tractor-trailers and other large trucks are particularly dangerous. Small passenger cars weigh an average of about 4,000 pounds, while a full tractor-trailer in the U.S. has a maximum weight of 80,000 pounds spread over 18 wheels.…
- Author: Legal Examiner Staffer
- Tags: Transportation

Though any traffic crash can be dangerous, those involving tractor-trailers and other large trucks are particularly dangerous. Small passenger cars weigh an average of about 4,000 pounds, while a full tractor-trailer in the U.S. has a maximum weight of 80,000 pounds spread over 18 wheels. Needless to say, when a passenger vehicle and a truck 20 times its weight collide, passenger vehicle occupants are at a heightened risk of being seriously injured or killed.

According to data released by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), [large truck crash fatalities reached its highest level in 29 years in 2017](https://www.trucks.com/2018/10/04/large-truck-fatalities-29-year-high/?ref=legalexaminer.com), even while overall traffic deaths declined. Now, preliminary data for 2018 indicates that[ truck-related fatalities are expected to have increased by another three percent from 2017 to 2018](https://www.ccjdigital.com/early-data-shows-increase-in-truck-involved-fatalities-in-2018/?ref=legalexaminer.com).

Ohio ranks at the top of the list among states for its number of traffic fatalities involving large trucks. Between 2014 and 2016, [Ohio was one of 10 states that accounted for over 50 percent of the nation’s fatal large truck accidents](https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/safety/data-and-statistics/2016-commercial-motor-vehicle-traffic-safety-facts-sheet?ref=legalexaminer.com). Joining it in the top 10 were California, Texas, Illinois, Indiana, Pennsylvania, New York, Georgia, and North Carolina.

**Leading Causes of Tractor-Trailer Accidents**

Most of the time, individuals killed in commercial vehicle accidents are occupants of passenger cars. [Over 70 percent of commercial vehicle fatalities in 2017 were individuals in vehicles other than the truck](https://www.legalexaminer.com/content/files/Api/Public/ViewPublication/812663.), and another 10 percent were pedestrians or cyclists. Only 841 of the 4,761 large truck accident fatalities were occupants of the involved semi-tractor trailer.

Common causes of serious or fatal semi-truck wrecks include:

- Speeding
- Aggressive driving, such as speeding or tailgating
- Driver fatigue
- Distracted driving, such as using a cell phone, eating, using GPS or other apps.
- Driving under the influence
- Failing to abide by traffic signs or signals

**Safety Tips for Traveling Past Tractor-Trailers**

As the driver of a passenger vehicle, you and your occupants are particularly vulnerable to serious injury or death in the event of a collision involving a tractor-trailer. With that in mind, there are [some things you can do to decrease the likelihood that you will get into a dangerous wreck](https://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/ourroads/tips-driving-safely-around-large-trucks-or-buses?ref=legalexaminer.com):

- Do not drive in a trucker’s blind spots. Tractor-trailers have large blind spots on all four sides, so a safe distance is needed to stay visible.
- Only pass truckers when you are able to see the driver in their vehicle’s mirror. Once you pass, do not switch into the tractor-trailer’s lane until it is clearly visible in your rearview mirror.  
Understand that trucks need extra room to turn, and that it is always a bad idea to squeeze by a truck without using a turn signal.
- Do not cut off trucks. It takes longer for large vehicles to stop, so cutting it too close could trigger a deadly crash.

**If you or a loved one was involved in a traffic crash involving a tractor-trailer, contact the attorneys at Murray & Murray Co., L.P.A. in Sandusky, Ohio today for exemplary legal service.**