Largest number of truckdriver highway fatalities occurred in Texas in 1998

With 93 deaths, Texas had the largest number of truckdriver highway fatalities in 1998. California followed with 75, while Florida was third with 59 fatalities. Throughout the U.S. there were 722 trucker fatalities on highways.

[Chart data—TXT]

The terrain of each State can have a large effect on the number of fatalities that occur within it. Some very mountainous areas can be deadly, as can stretches of long, monotonous highways. Additionally, States with larger numbers of truckdrivers traveling through them also have a higher number of fatalities. Other differences between states, such as the regulations placed on drivers of large trucks, can also influence the number of fatalities that occur within the state.

Data on workplace fatalities are from the BLS Safety and Health Statistics Program. To learn more about truckdriver fatalities, see "The Unforgiving Road: Trucker Fatalities" (PDF 65K), by Peggy Suarez, Compensation and Working Conditions, Winter 1999.