ATA claims 40% decline in truck-related fatality rate over past decade

The American Trucking Associations (ATA) has claimed that its analysis of the latest data from the US Department of Transportation has shown that the rate of truck-involved fatalities is declining over both the long and short term. According to ATA’s analysis of miles traveled data from the Federal Highway Administration (FHA) and also highway fatality data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the truck-involved fatality rate fell for the second straight year to 1.40 per 100 million miles traveled.

There were 3,903 truck-involved fatalities in 2014, a decline of 61 total from the previous year. At the same time, the number of miles traveled by large trucks rose to more than 279 billion. Of note,

The fatality rate dipped 2.78% from 2013 and has fallen 4.76% over the past two years. More impressively, the ATA analysis indicated that it has fallen 40.6% over the past decade.

“The short-term decline is welcome news, but the important figure is the long-term trend,” commented ATA President and CEO Bill Graves.

“Short-term changes, whether they’re increases or declines, can be blips – and just like you shouldn’t track your 401k on a daily basis, they shouldn’t be the primary lens truck safety is viewed through. The long-term trend – in this case, a more than 40% improvement – is of paramount importance.”

Graves added: “America’s trucking industry has invested billions to improve safety and that commitment is paying off.”