Big Rig Accidents in Wisconsin
The total number of accidents in Wisconsin was lower in 2016 than in the previous 3 years, but at 116,301 it is still higher than the number of crashes in 2011 or 2012. There were 501 fatal crashes and 28,908 with injuries. 549 people died as a result of these incidents. Big rig accidents often result in serious injuries or deaths. There were 7,461 semi-truck collisions in 2016 which resulted in 2,342 injuries and 79 deaths.
Fatal Truck Crash Data
It is helpful to review Wisconsin large truck collision data over the last 6 years to see the trends.
| Year | No. Truck Crashes | Fatalities | Injuries |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 6,407 | 74 | 1,938 |
| 2012 | 5,882 | 71 | 1,800 |
| 2013 | 7,087 | 85 | 2,140 |
| 2014 | 7,358 | 63 | 2,187 |
| 2015 | 7,019 | 62 | 2,095 |
| 2016 | 7,461 | 79 | 2,342 |
The data indicates that fatal truck collisions dipped slightly and then continued to increase in following years. The total deaths are higher than 2011 but lower than 2013 when it reached 85. While collisions increased so did the number of injuries. Injuries that are associated with big rig collisions are often severe.
Contributing Circumstances
There are various circumstances that may contribute to large truck fatal crashes. The most common include:
- Failure to control vehicle
- Speeding
- Inattentive driving
- Failure to yield
- Driver condition
- Left of center
- Following too close
- Improper turn
Some drivers were cited for traffic violations. Reports of contributing circumstances are gathered through accident data. More than one circumstance may be cited for a particular crash while others may not cite any of these factors. This data was provided by the Wisconsin Department of Transportation Traffic Crash Facts from 2012, the most current report issued.
Of the fatal incidents, most of them happened in the months of November, December, and February and the majority of them, 59, occurred in rural locations while only 19 happened in urban locations.
Manner of Collision
The manner and location of large truck accidents provide insight into how they occurred.
- Collision with another vehicle
- Side swipe
- Rear end
- Angle
- Head on
- Rear to rear
Of the total accidents reported during the year, most were rural and happened with another vehicle. Side swipe accidents occurred most frequently in urban areas as did rear end crashes. Head-on crashes happened in rural areas more than cities. Angle collisions happened almost as frequently in both cities and in the country.