Large trucks and buses have been involved in a number of serious crashes in North Carolina and across the United States. Data shows that the number of fatal crashes could be escalating, even if it remains below its 21st-century high point. In 2015, there were 4,311 large trucks and buses that were involved in deadly auto crashes around the country.
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has assembled data to depict the current state of road safety in regard to large vehicles. When trucks and buses get into a car crash, the results can be devastating for passengers and for other vehicles and pedestrians on the road. The large size of these vehicles means that truck or bus accidents can cause devastating personal injuries.
Between 2009 and 2015, the number of fatal crashes involving large trucks and buses rose by 20 percent. In just one year from 2014 to 2015, that number rose by 5 percent. Even more significantly, the number of crashes with personal injuries involving large trucks and buses has risen 62 percent from a 2009 low of 60,000 to its 2015 level.
Large trucks and buses are also traveling more. Vehicle miles traveled by large trucks increased by 0.3 percent between 2014 and 2015, while bus miles increased by 1.4 percent. Of the buses involved in fatal crashes, school buses and transit buses were the most frequent participants, with intercity buses involved much more rarely.
A personal injury lawyer can often be of assistance to people who have been harmed in a commercial truck accident when it can be determined that negligence was a factor. This could be on the part of a truck driver who was speeding, impaired, or distracted by a cellphone. In other cases, the accident could have been caused by improper maintenance, and thus the company could be held financially responsible. The company could also be held responsible under the theory of vicarious liability if the driver was on the clock at the time of the accident.