FMCSA Fact Sheet on Truck Driver Hours of Service

Fatality facts and figures and other stats on the hours of service rules.

Fatal Crash Rates

While the rate of fatal crashes involving large trucks per 100 million vehicle miles traveled decreased each year from 2005 through 2009, it rose, along with increased demands for freight shipping, from 2009 through 2012.

Data from the U.S. Department of Transportation shows that in 2012 there were:

• 10,659,380 large trucks registered in the United States;
• 317,000 traffic crashes involving large trucks – an average of 6,100 each week, or 868 per day;
• 3,921 fatalities involving large truck crashes – an average of 75 per week, or 11 per day;
• 73,000 large truck injury crashes – an average of 1,400 per week, or 200 per day.

Driver fatigue is a leading factor in large truck crashes. The 2006 Large Truck Crash Causation Study reported that 13 percent of Commercial Motor Vehicle (CMV) drivers were considered to have been fatigued at the time of a serious crash.

The Revised Hours-of-Service rules from the FMCSA went into effect in July 2013 to reduce fatigue-related crashes and
ensure that drivers get…