OKLAHOMA CITY – A national report ranks three Oklahoma counties in the top 20 for large truck fatalities and scores the state in the top percentile for crashes.
Autoblog, an industry and news buying guide, cited the most recent data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and ranked the top 20 counties in the nation for truck crashes – most of them in rural areas.
Truck-related fatalities were highest in Canadian County, 19; McClain County, 18; and Grady County, 10; in the nation. The data is compiled from police reports, death and medical records, and state transportation data. It also includes city streets, county roads and state and U.S. highways.
Each year the Oklahoma Highway Safety Office publishes its Highway Safety Plan. The office steers numerous committees dedicated to increasing highway safety on several fronts, including awareness campaigns on impaired driving, child safety and injury prevention among several others.
Southwest Ledger did not find an analysis of fatal truck collisions by county in the OHSO’s 2023 Highway Safety Plan, but it shows total fatality crashes statewide are highest on city streets, followed by rural state highways, county roads and rural U.S. highways.
All crashes in Oklahoma recorded by vehicle type showed 5% were large truck collisions, but pickup trucks accounted for 22%. Passenger car crashes were the highest at 45%.
The top reasons for all crashes included failure to yield, 11.1%; inattentiveness, 7.6% and improper movement, 6.7%. Fatality crash causes were improper movement, 13.7%; unsafe speed, 13.1%; and left of center, 5.6%.
The Oklahoma Department of Transportation, an OHSO partner, said in a prepared statement that it is constantly working to improve highway safety.
“ODOT actively installs concrete barriers and cable barriers on all interstates, areas with high crossovers and narrow medians,” the statement reads.
The agency has also adopted standards higher than federal requirements, such as wider striping, and continues to install shoulder and “center line rumble strips to help prevent runoff and crossover collisions.”
Zero traffic deaths is the agency’s goal.
“Any collision in Oklahoma is a concern for the Oklahoma Department of Transportation as we are partners in the Federal Highway Administration’s goal of reaching zero traffic deaths,” the statement reads. “Oklahoma ranks 13th nationally in heavily travelled truck routes, but ranks lower in fatal commercial vehicle crashes than four surrounding states that share interstates routes with Oklahoma.”
ODOT’s safety campaigns focus on encouraging drivers to use more caution and always wear seat belts, “which is the most important tool to help reduce the risk of death and serious injury in a crash,” the statement reads.