DOT HS 810 646 August 2006

Large-Truck Crash Causation Study:

An Initial Overview

This document is available to the public from the National Technical Information Service, Springfield, Virginia 22161

Published by:

NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis
This publication is distributed by the U.S. Department of Transportation, National Highway 

Traffic Safety Administration, in the interest of information exchange. The opinions, findings, 

and conclusions expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those 

of the Department of Transportation or the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. 

The United States Government assumes no liability for its contents or use thereof. If trade or 

manufacturers’ names are mentioned, it is only because they are considered essential to the 

object of the publication and should not be construed as an endorsement. The United States 

Government does not endorse products or manufacturers. 
Technical Report Documentation Page 

1. Report No.

DOT HS 810 646 

2. Government Accession No. 3. Recipients's Catalog No. 

5. Report Date 

August 2006 

4. Title and Subtitle

Large-Truck Crash Causation Study: An Initial 

Overview 6. Performing Organization Code 

NPO-121 

7. Author(s)

Marc Starnes 

8. Performing Organization Report No.

9. Performing Organization Name and Address 10. Work Unit No. (TRAIS)n code

National Center for Statistics and Analysis 

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration 

U.S. Department of Transportation 

NPO-121, 400 Seventh Street SW. 

Washington, DC 20590 

11. Contract of Grant No. 

13. Type of Report and Period Covered

NHTSA Technical Report 

12. Sponsoring Agency Name and Address

National Center for Statistics and Analysis 

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration 

U.S. Department of Transportation 

NPO-121, 400 Seventh Street SW. 

Washington, DC 20590

14. Sponsoring Agency Code

15.Supplementary Notes 

16. Abstract

The Large-Truck Crash Causation Study (LTCCS) is a data collection project conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety 

Administration (NHTSA) and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) of the United States Department of 

Transportation (USDOT). NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis (NCSA) worked together with FMCSA to develop 

the LTCCS, which was conducted within the National Automotive Sampling System (NASS) that NCSA operates. 

The tables in this report were created through the use of the data collected in the LTCCS. While the LTCCS collected data on 

approximately 1,000 variables, the tables presented in this report comprise only a sample of these variables. The complete LTCCS 

variable database can be used jointly to examine a large number of issues surrounding large-truck crashes. One section in the 

report focuses on “crash-level” variables, which provide counts of crashes that occurred under certain characteristics (i.e., crash 

counts stratified according to how many vehicles were in the crash). The next section includes tables that are presented at the 

“vehicle level.” These tables thus provide counts of the number of vehicles involved in certain types of crashes (i.e., vehicle counts 

that have been stratified by the injury severity of the person most severely injured in each vehicle). The tables in the following 

section are presented at the “driver level.” These tables display counts of drivers that were involved in certain crash scenarios (i.e., 

the number of drivers involved in the crashes, stratified by the age of the driver). The appendix includes tables and computer

programs for calculating standard errors and confidence intervals using LTCCS data. 

17. Key Words 

Large-truck crash causation study, LTCCS, crash 

type, critical event, critical reason, environment 

18. Distribution Statement

Document is available to the public through the National 

Technical Information Service, 

Springfield, VA 22161

19. Security Classif. (of this report)

 Unclassified 

20. Security Classif. (of this page)

 Unclassified 

21. No of Pages

43 

22. Price

Form DOT F1700.7 (8-72) Reproduction of completed page authorized 

Table of Contents 

I. Executive Summary ................................................................................. 1 

II. Introduction .......................................................................................... 3 

III. Tables Included in This Report .................................................................. 5 

IV. Crash Counts Available Through the LTCCS Database ...................................... 7 

V. Vehicle Counts Available Through the LTCCS Database ..................................... 11 

Critical Event and Critical Reason ........................................................... 17 

Environment, Location, and Pre-Crash Variables .......................................... 32 

VI. Driver Counts Available Through the LTCCS Database ...................................... 37 

VII. Appendix.............................................................................................. 45 

 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 1

I. Executive Summary 

The Large-Truck Crash Causation Study (LTCCS) is a data collection project conducted by the 

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Federal Motor Carrier Safety 

Administration (FMCSA) of the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT). 

NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis (NCSA) worked together with FMCSA to 

develop the LTCCS, which was conducted within the National Automotive Sampling System 

(NASS) that NCSA operates. 

Prior to the execution of the LTCCS, no USDOT national database existed that contained 

information detailing the contributing factors for large-truck crashes. LTCCS is the first national 

study that determined the reasons and associated factors contributing to serious large-truck 

crashes. This study will assist DOT agencies in implementing effective countermeasures 

designed to reduce the frequency and severity of serious large-truck crashes. 

Teams of trained researchers from NHTSA’s NASS program worked with State truck inspectors 

to collect nationally representative data pertaining to the causes of serious large-truck crashes. 

The crashes that were examined occurred from April 1, 2001, through December 31, 2003. For 

each crash, information was collected for approximately 1,000 variables. 

The data collected by the LTCCS provide detailed descriptions about the crash environment (i.e., 

weather, road conditions, lighting conditions), vehicles involved in the crash (i.e., vehicle type, 

weight, cargo type, brakes, air bag status), and drivers (i.e., driving record, fatigue, sleep 

patterns, restraint use), as well as information about passengers and nonmotorists involved in the 

large-truck crashes. Key factors that led to the crash were recorded to assist researchers in 

measuring associations between certain crash types and the events that led to the crash. 

The LTCCS gathered data from 2,284 vehicles involved in 1,070 crashes. National estimates are 

calculated by applying weights to these vehicles and crashes. A total of 2,078 vehicles and 963 

crashes have non-zero weights. When the counts from these crashes are weighted, they represent 

a total of 241,000 vehicles involved in 120,000 crashes. Of the 241,000 vehicles in the LTCCS, 

141,000 are large trucks and 100,000 are “other vehicles” (i.e., passenger cars, light trucks, vans, 

sport utility vehicles, and motorcycles). Multivehicle crashes comprise 103,000 large trucks and 

100,000 other vehicles, while single-vehicle crashes account for 38,000 large trucks. These 

weighted estimates were calculated through the use of statistical sampling weights for each 

crash. In the text of this report, the weighted count estimates are rounded off to the nearest 

thousand, while the weighted estimates shown in each table are not rounded off. 

The tables in this report were created through the use of the data collected in the LTCCS. While 

the LTCCS collected data on approximately 1,000 variables, the tables presented in this report 

comprise only a sample of these variables. The complete LTCCS variable database can be used 

jointly to examine many issues surrounding large-truck crashes. All tables in the Crash Counts 

Available Through the LTCCS Database section (page 7) of this report are based on “crashlevel” variables, which provide counts of crashes that occurred under certain characteristics (i.e., 

crash counts stratified according to how many vehicles were in the crash). The following section 

(page 11), Vehicle Counts Available Through the LTCCS Database, includes tables that are 

presented at the “vehicle level.” These tables thus provide counts of the number of vehicles 

involved in certain types of crashes (i.e., vehicle counts that have been stratified by the injury 
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 2

severity of the person most severely injured in each vehicle). The tables in the last section, 

Driver Counts Available Through the LTCCS Database (page 37), are presented at the “driver 

level.” These tables display counts of drivers that were involved in certain crash scenarios (i.e., 

the number of drivers involved the crashes, stratified by the age of the driver). 

One of the key variables in the LTCCS database was termed “critical event.” Critical event was 

defined as the event that led immediately to the crash. The critical event is the action or event 

that made the crash unavoidable, and only one critical event is defined for each crash. This 

variable provides an example of what can be learned from the study. In multivehicle crashes, 4 

percent of large trucks had their critical event coded as “this vehicle loss of control,” while 33 

percent of large trucks had their critical event coded as “other motor vehicle in lane.” This is one 

example of data that was collected in the LTCCS, and this variable is discussed later in this 

report. 

The variables mentioned in this report are intended to provide examples of the extensive list of 

variables collected in the LTCCS; however data surrounding many other issues is provided in the 

LTCCS, including topics such as brakes, cargo shift, driver health, nonmotorists, vehicle 

passengers, vehicle inspections, truck exterior, jackknives, transportation of hazardous materials, 

driver DMV violations, and more. The LTCCS provides an extensive database that will be used 

to examine a plethora of aspects of large-truck crashes. The USDOT plans to conduct more 

analyses and report the findings in the future. 
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 3

II. Introduction 

Prior to the execution of the Large-Truck Crash Causation Study (LTCCS), no USDOT national 

database existed that contained information detailing the causes and contributing factors for 

large-truck crashes. LTCCS is the first national study that determined the reasons and associated 

factors contributing to serious large-truck crashes. This study will assist DOT agencies in 

implementing effective countermeasures designed to reduce the frequency and severity of 

serious large-truck crashes. 

The only crashes examined in the LTCCS were in-transport large-truck crashes with a maximum 

crash injury severity of killed, or incapacitating injury, or non-incapacitating injury; therefore, in 

order to be included in the LTCCS, an identifiable injury needed to result from the crash. Noninjury crashes were excluded from this study. Certain crashes were examined yet were later 

found to not meet the study criteria, and these crashes were given statistical weights of zero, and 

therefore are not represented in the tables in this report which include weighted counts. The 

information collected on these additional crashes was retained in the database files. 

The crashes were examined in 24 locations within the United States, with the locations stratified 

by geographic region (Northeast, Midwest, South, West) and population size (central city, large 

county, group of counties). More information on the methodology of the LTCCS is available in 

the Large-Truck Crash Causation Study Analysis Series: Methodology of the Large-Truck Crash 

Causation Study (FMCSA-RI-05-035), written by Daniel Blower and Kenneth Campbell. 

Researchers examined crash scenes that represent an estimated 120,000 crashes involving 

241,000 vehicles. The 241,000 vehicles consisted of 141,000 large trucks and 100,000 other 

vehicles. These weighted estimates were calculated through the use of statistical sampling 

weights for each crash. In the appendix of this report, information is presented on calculating 

standard errors and confidence intervals for variables in the LTCCS database. Sample code in 

both the SAS and SUDAAN computer languages is included, as are the standard errors and 95-

percent confidence intervals for the first table in this report, Table 1. A brief explanation of the 

interpretation of these tables is also in the appendix. 

During the LTCCS data collection, NASS researchers received voluntary participation and 

cooperation from law enforcement agencies, hospitals, physicians, medical examiners, coroners, 

tow yard operators, garages, vehicle storage facilities, as well as the individuals involved in the 

large-truck crashes. Cooperation was established that allowed police agencies and hospitals to 

provide copies of transcripts of official records. Tow yards, police impound yards, and crashinvolved parties were contacted to obtain information about vehicle and occupant characteristics 

and crash circumstances. 

Crashes were investigated quickly following the crash occurrence. An on-scene investigation 

response protocol was developed, as opposed to a reactive approach (follow-up investigation), in 

order to assist in gathering in-depth crash-related data in a timely manner. This protocol was 

developed since experience has shown that the availability of crash causation data often 

diminishes rapidly with the passage of time. 
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 4

This on-scene investigative method signified the first time in NASS history that police 

investigators, certified Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance (CVSA) Level I State truck 

inspectors, and NASS truck researchers combined their efforts and agreed to simultaneously 

respond to a crash scene. This approach resulted in a higher rate of participation by crash 

victims, a higher quality of interview and vehicle information, and a better understanding of the 

events surrounding the crash. These accomplishments were made without compromising 

enforcement rules or research protocols. The police and CVSA State truck inspectors maintained 

their responsibility for enforcing traffic laws and safety regulations, while NASS maintained its 

obligation of ensuring research data confidentiality and data integrity. 
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 5

III. Tables Included In This Report 

The tables in this report were created through the use of the data collected in the LTCCS. While 

the LTCCS collected data on approximately 1,000 variables, the tables presented in this report 

comprise only a sample of these variables. The complete LTCCS variable database can be used 

jointly to examine a large number of issues surrounding large-truck crashes. 

In this report, Section IV, Section V, and Section VI contain crash, vehicle, and driver counts 

respectively. Most of the vehicle counts and driver counts are stratified according to (1) whether 

they occurred in a single-vehicle crash or a multiple vehicle crash, and (2) whether the vehicle 

occupant was in a large truck or “other vehicle.” 

Section IV is named Crash Counts Available Through the LTCCS Database. Tables 1 through 4, 

which are in Section IV, are based on “crash-level” variables, which provide counts of crashes 

that occurred under certain characteristics (i.e., crash counts stratified according to how many 

vehicles were in the crash). 

Section V, entitled Vehicle Counts Available Through the LTCCS Database, includes Tables 5 

through 20 that are presented at the “vehicle level.” These tables thus provide counts of the 

number of vehicles involved in certain types of crashes (i.e., vehicle counts that have been 

stratified by the injury severity of the person most severely injured in each vehicle). 

The counts in Tables 21 through 27 are presented at the “driver level” in Section VI, Driver

Counts Available Through the LTCCS Database. These tables display counts of drivers who 

were involved in certain crash scenarios (i.e., the number of drivers involved the crashes, 

stratified by the age of the driver). 

At the end of this report is Section VII, which is an appendix that includes tables and other 

information on calculating standard errors and confidence intervals for variables in the LTCCS 

database. 

This report introduces the reader to the LTCCS database and is designed to be a brief overview 

of the LTCCS. Examples of variables that are presented in this report include: 

• Number of trucks and total number of vehicles in each crash (i.e., three total vehicles, 

which includes one large truck) 

• Types of vehicles in each crash (i.e., single-unit large trucks, combination large trucks, 

passenger vehicles) 

• Injury severity of people involved in the crashes (i.e., fatally injured, incapacitating 

injury) 

• General crash type (i.e., right roadside departure, rear-end, head-on) 

• Specific crash type (i.e., jackknife event) 

• Critical event, general level* (i.e., this vehicle loss of control) 

• Critical event, specific level* (i.e., blow out/flat tire) 
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 6

• Critical reason, general level* (i.e., driver decision factor, vehicle-related factor) 

• Critical reason, specific level* (i.e., driver inattention, brakes failed) 

• Weather (i.e., rain, snow, fog) 

• Lighting conditions (i.e., dark, dusk) 

• Pre-crash movement (i.e., passing another vehicle, turning right) 

• Pre-crash location (i.e., departed roadway, stayed in original travel lane) 

• Driver age 

• Driver seat air bag status 

• Restraint use of driver 

• Source of driver blood alcohol concentration (BAC) test result (i.e., police reported) 

• BAC test status of driver (i.e., test performed and results negative) 

• Driver familiarity with vehicle driven (i.e., driven 6-10 times in the last six months) 

* = Explanations of the definitions of these variables are presented beginning on page 17, in the section entitled 

Critical Event and Critical Reason

The variables mentioned in this report are intended to provide examples of the extensive list of 

variables collected in the LTCCS; however data surrounding many other issues are provided in 

the LTCCS database, including topics such as brakes, cargo shift, driver health, nonmotorists, 

vehicle passengers, vehicle inspections, truck exterior, jackknives, transportation of hazardous 

materials, driver DMV violations, and more. Thus, the LTCCS provides the opportunity to 

examine many aspects of large-truck crashes. The USDOT plans to conduct more analyses and 

report the findings in the future. 
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 7

IV. Crash Counts Available Through the LTCCS Database 

The LTCCS provides extensive information about large-truck crashes, including details about the 

vehicles and people involved in the crash. This section shows several examples of the 

information that is available in the LTCCS database, with a focus being on crash counts. These 

“crash counts” or “crash-level variables” provide details about the crash, the vehicles and the 

drivers involved. 

It is important to note that the crash counts in this chapter represent the number of crashes that 

existed under certain scenarios. For example, Table 1 displays the total number of vehicles 

involved in the crash, stratified by the number of large trucks involved the crash. Each cell in 

Table 1 represents the number of crashes that involved a certain number of total vehicles and a 

certain number of trucks (i.e., 51,000 crashes involved two total vehicles, one of which was a 

large truck). Therefore the counts of Table 1 are crash counts, as is consistent throughout 

Section IV. 

The LTCCS gathered data from 1,070 crashes. Nine hundred sixty-three of these crashes have 

non-zero weights, and these crashes are weighted to represent a total of 120,000 crashes. This 

chapter includes information that is vital toward gaining an understanding of the number and 

type of crashes in the LTCCS. Much more crash-level information is available through the 

plethora of variables within the LTCCS database. 

In the appendix of this report, information is presented on calculating standard errors and 

confidence intervals for variables in the LTCCS database. Sample code in both the SAS and 

SUDAAN computer languages is included, as are the standard errors and 95-percent confidence 

intervals for Table 1. A brief explanation of the interpretation of these tables is also placed in the 

appendix. 

Crash Tables 

Table 1 shows that 104,000 (87%) of the 120,000 crashes involved only one large truck, while 

12 percent of the crashes involved two large trucks, and only 2 percent involved three or more 

large trucks. Among the 104,000 crashes that included only one large truck, 38,000 (37%) of 

them consisted of only the large truck, and 66,000 (63%) consisted of one large truck and one or 

more other vehicles. 

Of the group of 16,000 crashes that involved multiple trucks, 84 percent involved two large 

trucks and 16 percent involved three or more large trucks. One-half of the crashes with two large 

trucks involved only large trucks, while the other half of these crashes also involved one or more 

other vehicles. 
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 8

Table 1 

Weighted Number of Crashes 

By Number of Vehicles and Number of Large Trucks Involved 

1 truck 2 trucks 3 or more trucks Total 

By Number of Vehicles 

# % # % # % # % 

1 vehicle 38,127 37 0 0 0 0 38,127 32 

2 vehicles 51,025 49 6,888 50 0 0 57,913 48 

3 or more vehicles 14,501 14 6,964 50 2,698 100 24,163 20 

Total 103,652 100 13,852 100 2,698 100 120,202 100 

Source: NHTSA, NCSA, LTCCS. Study Time Span: April 1, 2001 - December 31, 2003

The numbers of crashes in the LTCCS are shown in Table 2, according to the number and type 

of large trucks that were involved in the crash. The 120,000 large-truck crashes were stratified 

into four categories as follows: a crash involving one single-unit large truck (25% of all largetruck crashes), a crash involving one combination large truck (61%), a crash involving several 

large trucks (13%), and a crash involving a large truck of unknown truck type (1%). 

Combination trucks include tractor- and semi-tractor-trailers. 

Table 2

Weighted Number of Crashes, by Truck Type

Truck Type = Single Unit Truck, Combination Truck or Multiple Trucks

Single Unit Truck Combination Truck Multiple Trucks 

Unknown Truck 

Type Total 

# % # % # % # % # % 

22,440 25 80,757 61 16,550 13 456 1 120,202 100 

Source: NHTSA, NCSA, LTCCS. Study Time Span: April 1, 2001 - December 31, 2003

The LTCCS crashes are categorized into five types of crashes in Table 3. Thirty-two percent 

(38,000) of the crashes involved only one vehicle (a large truck). Among the 48 percent of the 

crashes that were two-vehicle crashes, 88 percent (51,000) of these were between one large truck 

and one non-truck, with the remaining 12 percent (7,000) of these consisted of only two large 

trucks. 

Twenty percent of all large-truck crashes (24,000) had three or more vehicles, with a large truck 

being involved in the first harmful event in about 80 percent of these crashes (19,000). 
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 9

Table 3 

Weighted Number of Crashes

By Crash Type and Vehicle Type

By Crash Type and Vehicle Type # % 

One vehicle (has to be a truck) 38,127 32 

Two vehicles: one truck and one non-truck 51,025 42 

Two vehicles: both trucks 6,888 6 

Three or more vehicles: one truck in 1st harmful event 19,216 16 

Three or more vehicles: no truck in 1st harmful event 4,947 4 

Total 120,202 100 

Source: NHTSA, NCSA, LTCCS. Study Time Span: April 1, 2001 - December 31, 2003

The crashes shown in Table 3 are further stratified according to crash severity, and displayed in 

Table 4. This crash severity, or maximum injury severity, is defined as the maximum injury 

severity of all people involved in the crash. In 55 percent (66,000) of the LTCCS crashes studied 

in this survey, the maximum injury severity was a nonincapacitating injury, and 37 percent 

(44,000) of the crashes had a maximum injury severity of incapacitating injury, while the 

remaining 9 percent (10,000) of all LTCCS crashes involved a fatality. It is important to 

remember that every crash included in the LTCCS had a maximum injury severity of a nonincapacitating, incapacitating, or fatal injury. 

Table 4

Weighted Number of Crashes

By Number of Vehicles Involved, Vehicle Type and Crash Severity

B - Nonincapacitating 

injury 

A - 

Incapacitating 

By Crash Type and Vehicle Type injury K - Killed Total 

# % # % # % # % 

One vehicle (has to be a truck) 25,661 67 10,766 28 1,700 4 38,127 100 

Two vehicles: one truck and one nontruck 23,675 46 22,507 44 4,842 9 51,025 100 

Two vehicles: both trucks 3,239 47 3,284 48 364 5 6,888 100 

Three or more vehicles: one truck in 1st 

harmful event 11,628 61 5,534 29 2,053 11 19,216 100 

Three or more vehicles: no truck in 1st 

harmful event 1,671 34 2,005 41 1,271 26 4,947 100 

Total 65,876 55 44,097 37 10,229 9 120,202 100 

Source: NHTSA, NCSA, LTCCS. Study Time Span: April 1, 2001 - December 31, 2003
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 10

When the crashes were stratified by the maximum injury severity, different crash patterns 

emerged, as shown in Table 4. Among nonincapacitating crashes, 39 percent involved only one 

large truck, and 36 percent involved one large truck and one non-truck. Crashes where an 

incapacitating injury was the maximum injury severity were distributed in a far different manner 

across crash type and vehicles involved. Fifty-one percent of these crashes occurred between a 

large truck and a non-truck, and just 24 percent involved only a large truck. These data show 

that passengers in vehicles other than large trucks are more likely to be seriously injured than are 

the passengers within the large truck, when these two different vehicle types collide. The higher 

the injury severity of the crash, then the more likely the crash involved multiple vehicles. 

Crashes where people were fatally injured were more likely to be three-or-more-vehicle crashes, 

compared to crashes where no one was fatally injured. Thirty-two percent of fatal large-truck 

crashes involved three or more vehicles, and over three-fifths of these crashes had a large truck 

in the first harmful event. Only 17 percent of fatal large-truck crashes were single-vehicle 

crashes, much less than the 24 percent of incapacitating injury crashes and 39 percent of 

nonincapacitating injury crashes that had a large truck as the only vehicle involved. This shows 

once again that the injury severity of the crash is less among single-vehicle large-truck crashes, 

compared to crashes involving one large truck and one non-truck. While only 4 percent of 

single-vehicle large-truck crashes involved a fatality, fatal crashes constituted 9 percent of 

crashes that involved a large truck and a non-truck. 
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 11

V. Vehicle Counts Available Through the LTCCS Database 

As shown throughout this report, the LTCCS provides extensive information about large-truck 

crashes, including details about the vehicles and drivers involved in the crash. This section 

shows examples of the detailed information that is available in the LTCCS database, with the 

unit of measurement being a count of involved vehicles. These “vehicle counts” or “vehiclelevel variables” provide details about the crash, the vehicles, and the drivers involved. 

While facts about the drivers and passengers in the vehicles are displayed, it is important to note 

that the vehicle counts in this chapter all represent the number of vehicles that existed under 

certain scenarios at the time of the crash. For example, one chart measures the “maximum injury 

level” of vehicle passengers, while another chart is based on the lighting conditions at the time of 

the crash. However, the counts of the maximum injury level and the lighting conditions are both 

vehicle counts, as is consistent throughout this chapter. 

Thus the counts of the maximum injury level measure the injury level of the most severely 

injured passenger in each vehicle. Similarly, the counts of the lighting conditions measure the 

lighting conditions that are experienced by each vehicle. These are examples of variables that 

could be measured at the person level (i.e., injury severity) or the crash level (i.e., lighting 

conditions), but are measured at the vehicle level in this chapter. 

The LTCCS gathered data from a total of 241,000 vehicles. All 38,000 single-vehicle crashes in 

the LTCCS are large-truck crashes. The multivehicle crashes in the LTCCS include 103,000 

large trucks and 100,000 “other vehicles” (i.e., passenger cars, light trucks, vans, sport utility 

vehicles, and motorcycles). These vehicle counts are stratified into two above-mentioned crash 

types: single-vehicle crashes and multivehicle crashes. Within each crash type, the vehicle 

counts fall into two categories: large trucks and other vehicles. 

The tables in this chapter include information about topics such as vehicle type, crash type, 

critical event and critical reason, maximum injury level, crash environment, crash location, and 

pre-crash movement. 

Vehicle Tables 

Fifty-nine percent of the vehicles in the LTCCS are large trucks, with 15 percent being singleunit trucks, and 44 percent combination trucks. As shown in Table 5, the other vehicles are 

almost all passenger cars or light trucks (41%). 

Table 5

Weighted Number of Involved Vehicles, by Vehicle Body Type

Single-Unit Trucks Combination Trucks 

Passenger Cars and 

Light Trucks 

Other Vehicles (i.e., 

Motorcycles and 

Buses) Total 

# % # % # % # % # % 

34,962 15 106,245 44 98,401 41 1,420 1 241,028 100 

Source: NHTSA, NCSA, LTCCS. Study Time Span: April 1, 2001 - December 31, 2003
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 12

The LTCCS categorized the variable “general accident type” into 13 categories, and the “specific 

accident type” into dozens of categories. The general accident type is made of broad categories, 

such as “rear-end.” Comparatively, each category of the specific accident type is, as the variable 

name suggests, more informative about the specifics of the crash (see Table 7 for the categories 

of the specific accident type). Among the large trucks, the general accident type includes 23 

percent “rear-end” and 10 percent “right roadside departure,” with the general accident type of 

26 percent of the trucks being labeled as “miscellaneous” (see Table 6). 

Table 6

Weighted Number of Trucks by General Accident Type (of the Vehicle)

By General Accident Type # % 

Right Roadside Departure 14,023 10 

Rear-End 31,935 23 

Head-On 4,033 3 

Turn Across Path 7,033 5 

Straight Paths 8,272 6 

Same Trafficway Opposite Directions - Sideswipe/Angle 6,433 5 

Left Roadside Departure 11,110 8 

Same Trafficway Same Direction - Forward Impact 126 0 

Same Trafficway Opposite Directions - Forward Impact 146 0 

Turn Into Path 4,251 3 

Single Driver - Forward Impact 2,644 2 

Same Trafficway Same Direction - Sideswipe/Angle 14,785 10 

Miscellaneous 36,409 26 

Total 141,200 100 

Source: NHTSA, NCSA, LTCCS. Study Time Span: April 1, 2001 - December 31, 2003

The specific accident type includes dozens of categories such as “single driver, right roadside 

departure, drive off road” (6%), “single driver, left roadside departure, control/traction loss” 

(4%), “same trafficway, same direction, rear end: stopped (striking vehicle)” (6%), and “same 

trafficway, same direction, sideswipe/angle: straight ahead” (4%). These categories are listed 

below in Table 7. In a multivehicle crash, a striking vehicle impacts and delivers force to a 

struck vehicle. 

For more information on the many categories shown below for the “specific accident type” 

variable, one can refer to the NASS CDS 2000 Coding and Editing Manual (see page 292). The 

internet address for this publication is the following: 

http://www-nass.nhtsa.dot.gov/NASS/CDS/DataColl/man2000.pdf
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 13

Table 7

Weighted Number of Trucks, by Specific Accident Type (of the Vehicle)

By Specific Accident Type # % 

Miscellaneous – Others – No Impact 1,321 1

Single driver, right roadside departure, drive off road 7,802 6

Single driver, right roadside departure, control/traction loss 5,574 4

Single driver, right roadside departure, avoid collision with vehicle, pedestrian, animal 519 0

Single driver, right roadside departure, specifics unknown 127 0

Single driver, left roadside departure, drive off road 4,407 3

Single driver, left roadside departure, control/traction loss 5,494 4

Single driver, left roadside departure, avoid collision with vehicle, pedestrian or animal 853 1

Single driver, left roadside departure, specifics unknown 356 0

Single driver, forward impact, parked car 45 0

Single driver, forward impact, stationary object 32 0

Single driver, forward impact, pedestrian or animal 2,290 2

Single driver, forward impact, end departure 125 0

Single driver, forward impact, specifics other 151 0

Same trafficway, same direction, rear-end: Stopped (striking vehicle) 7,766 6

Same trafficway, same direction, rear-end: stopped, forward moving (struck vehicle) 3,650 3

Same trafficway, same direction, rear-end: stopped, turning left (struck vehicle) 292 0

Same trafficway, same direction, rear-end: slower (striking vehicle) 5,244 4

Same trafficway, same direction, rear-end: slower, forward moving (struck vehicle) 5,768 4

Same trafficway, same direction, rear-end: slower, turning left (struck vehicle) 196 0

Same trafficway, same direction, rear-end: slower, turning right (struck vehicle) 34 0

Same trafficway, same direction, rear-end: decelerating (striking vehicle) 4,788 3

Same trafficway, same direction, rear-end: decelerating, moving forward (struck vehicle) 2,908 2

Same trafficway, same direction, rear-end: decelerating, turning right (struck vehicle) 535 0

Same trafficway, same direction, rear-end: specifics other 755 1

Same trafficway, same direction, forward impact, specifics other 119 0

Same trafficway, same direction, forward impact, specifics unknown 7 0

Same trafficway, same direction, sideswipe angle, straight ahead on left 138 0

Same trafficway, same direction, sideswipe/angle, straight ahead 5,807 4

Same trafficway, same direction, sideswipe angle, merging to right 4,515 3

Same trafficway, same direction, sideswipe angle, merging to left 2,457 2

Same trafficway, same direction, sideswipe angle, specifics other 1,867 1

Same trafficway, opposite direction, head-on, lateral move, infringing vehicle 1,441 1

Same trafficway, opposite direction, head-on, lateral move (going straight) 2,284 2

Same trafficway, opposite direction, head-on, specifics other 308 0

Same trafficway, opposite direction, forward impact, specifics other 146 0

Same trafficway, opposite direction, sideswipe/angle, lateral move, infringing vehicle 848 1
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 14

By Specific Accident Type # % 

Same trafficway, opposite direction, sideswipe/angle, lateral move, this vehicle going straight 4,707 3

Same trafficway, opposite direction, sideswipe/angle, specifics other 878 1

Change trafficway vehicle turning, turn across path, initially opposite direction, turning right 1,424 1

Change trafficway vehicle turning, turn across path, initially opposite direction, going straight 1,821 1

Change trafficway vehicle turning, turn across path, initially same direction, turning right, across 949 1

Change trafficway vehicle turning, turn across path, initially same direction, going straight 668 0

Change trafficway vehicle turning, turn across path, initially same direction, turning left, across 1,280 1

Change trafficway vehicle turning, turn across path, initially same direction, going straight 780 1

Change trafficway vehicle turning, turn across path, specifics other 112 0

Change trafficway vehicle turning, turn into path, turn into same direction, turning left 250 0

Change trafficway vehicle turning, turn into path, turn into same direction, going straight 39 0

Change trafficway vehicle turning, turn into path, turn into same direction, turning right 112 0

Change trafficway vehicle turning, turn into path, turn into same direction, going straight 416 0

Change trafficway vehicle turning, turn into path, turn into opposite direction, turning right 234 0

Change trafficway vehicle turning, turn into path, turn into opposite direction, going straight (L 206 0

Change trafficway vehicle turning, turn into path, turn into opposite direction, turning left 409 0

Change trafficway vehicle turning, turn into path, turn into opposite direction, going straight (R 2,535 2

Change trafficway vehicle turning, turn across path, specifics unknown 50 0

Intersecting paths, straight paths, t-bone frontal impact (L to R) 2,806 2

Intersecting paths, straight paths, t-bone right side impact 1,749 1

Intersecting paths, straight paths, t-bone frontal impact (R to L) 1,134 1

Intersecting paths, straight paths, t-bone left side impact 2,543 2

Intersecting paths, straight paths, specifics other 40 0

Miscellaneous – backing, etc – backing vehicle 474 0

Miscellaneous – others – other crash type 34,614 25

Total 141,200 100

Source: NHTSA, NCSA, LTCCS. Study Time Span: April 1, 2001 - December 31, 2003

The maximum injury level of all people in the vehicle (see Table 8) varies greatly between large 

trucks and other vehicles. The “no injury” category is more than three times as likely to be seen 

among large trucks (52%) as opposed to other vehicles (17%), while in other vehicles the leading 

categories of the maximum injury levels are “nonincapacitating injury” (44%) and 

“incapacitating injury” (29%). The percent of vehicles where someone was killed is more than 

four times as high in other vehicles (7.4%) as compared to large trucks (1.6%). Table 8 is 

measured at the vehicle level, and thus single-vehicle crash where the maximum injury level in 

the vehicle is “no injury” is an example of where a crash was included in the study due to a 

pedestrian or other non-occupant who was injured. 

In multivehicle crashes, the maximum injury level was “no injury” for 69 percent of large trucks 

and only 17 percent of other vehicles. For all other injury level categories, a higher percentage 

was seen in the other vehicles. This clearly shows that when a large truck and an “other vehicle” 

are involved in a crash, the passengers in the other vehicle are far more likely to be killed or 

seriously injured. 
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 15

Table 8 

Weighted Number of Involved Vehicles

By Maximum Injury Level, Crash Type, and Vehicle Body Type

SingleVehicle 

Crash

Multivehicle Crash Total

Truck Truck Other 

Vehicle Total Truck Other Vehicle Total

MAXIMUM 

INJURY 

LEVEL 

# % # % # % # % # % # % # % 

No injury 1,843 5 71,631 69 16,531 17 88,161 43 73,473 52 16,531 17 90,004 37

Possible injury 

0 0 506 0 1,080 1 1,586 1 506 0 1,080 1 1,586 1

Nonincapacitating 

injury 25,227 66 20,706 20 43,821 44 64,527 32 45,933 33 43,821 44 89,754 37

Incapacitating 

injury 

9,670 25 7,441 7 28,980 29 36,421 18 17,111 12 28,980 29 46,091 19

Killed 1,031 3 1,228 1 7,411 7 8,639 4 2,259 2 7,411 7 9,670 4

Injury, severity 

unknown 

356 1 1,562 2 2,005 2 3,567 2 1,919 1 2,005 2 3,924 2

Total 38,127 100 103,074 100 99,828 100 202,902 100 141,200 100 99,828 100 241,028 100

Source: NHTSA, NCSA, LTCCS. Study Time Span: April 1, 2001 - December 31, 2003

Table 9 shows that the distributions of crash type configuration are quite different between large 

trucks and other vehicles. For example, although “rear-end” was the crash type configuration for 

23 percent of large trucks and other vehicles, 10 percent of large trucks and only 1 percent of 

other vehicles were coded as “right roadside departure.” 

In single-vehicle crashes, 61 percent of the large trucks had either a right roadside departure 

(34%) or left roadside departure (27%). In multivehicle crashes only 1 percent of vehicles were 

coded as right roadside departure and 2 percent coded as left roadside departure. Twenty-seven 

percent of vehicles in multivehicle crashes had their crash type coded as “rear-end,” as shown in 

Table 9. 
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 16

Table 9

Weighted Number of Involved Vehicles 

By General Accident Type, Crash Type, and Involved Vehicle Type

SingleVehicle 

Crash

Multivehicle Crash Total

Truck Truck Other 

Vehicle Total Truck Other Vehicle Total

General 

Accident Type 

# % # % # % # % # % # % # % 

Right Roadside 

Departure 13,099 34 924 1 622 1 1,545 1 14,023 10 622 1 14,644 6

Rear-End 0 0 31,935 31 23,454 23 55,389 27 31,935 23 23,454 23 55,389 23

Head-On 0 0 4,033 4 3,117 3 7,151 4 4,033 3 3,117 3 7,151 3

Turn Across 

Path 0 0 7,033 7 5,406 5 12,439 6 7,033 5 5,406 5 12,439 5

Straight Paths 0 0 8,272 8 6,369 6 14,641 7 8,272 6 6,369 6 14,641 6

Same Trafficway 

Opposite 

Directions - 

Sideswipe/Angle 0 0 6,433 6 8,431 8 14,865 7 6,433 5 8,431 8 14,865 6

Left Roadside 

Departure 10,229 27 881 1 3,794 4 4,675 2 11,110 8 3,794 4 14,904 6

Same Trafficway 

Same Direction - 

Forward Impact 0 0 126 0 119 0 246 0 126 0 119 0 246 0

Same Trafficway 

Opposite 

Directions - 

Forward Impact 0 0 146 0 146 0 292 0 146 0 146 0 292 0

Turn Into Path 0 0 4,251 4 4,219 4 8,470 4 4,251 3 4,219 4 8,470 4

Single Driver - 

Forward Impact 2,432 6 212 0 212 0 424 0 2,644 2 212 0 2,855 1

Same Trafficway 

Same Direction - 

Sideswipe/Angle 0 0 14,785 14 14,247 14 29,032 14 14,785 10 14,247 14 29,032 12

Miscellaneous 12,367 32 24,042 23 29,692 30 53,734 26 36,409 26 29,692 30 66,101 27

Total 38,127 100 103,074 100 99,828 100 202,902 100 141,200 100 99,828 100 241,028 100

Source: NHTSA, NCSA, LTCCS. Study Time Span: April 1, 2001 - December 31, 2003
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 17

Critical Event and Critical Reason 

The “critical event” of the crash is defined as the event that immediately led to the crash. One 

and only one critical event is defined for each crash. The critical event is the action or event that 

made the collision unavoidable. 

The “critical reason” is the immediate reason for the critical event, and it describes why the 

critical event occurred. Possible critical reasons include driver decisions, vehicle failures, and 

environmental conditions. 

Both the critical reason and the critical event were recorded at the general level and the specific 

level. Each critical reason at the general level (i.e., “driver performance factor”) has a variety of 

different specific levels (i.e., “panic/freezing” and “too fast for curve/turn”). In addition, each 

critical event at the general level (i.e., “this vehicle traveling”) has a variety of different crash 

types (i.e., “off the edge of the road on the right side”). 

Table 10 shows that in multivehicle crashes, the critical event (general level) for 65 percent of 

large trucks and 63 percent of other vehicles falls into the three categories of “this vehicle 

traveling,” “other motor vehicle in lane,” or “other motor vehicle encroaching into lane.” The 

critical event in 4 percent of the large trucks in multivehicle crashes and 47 percent of large 

trucks in single-vehicle crashes were coded as “this vehicle loss of control.” In multivehicle 

crashes, 28 percent of other vehicles and 19 percent of large trucks have a critical event coded as 

“this vehicle not involved in first harmful event.” 
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 18

Table 10

Weighted Number of Involved Vehicles

By Critical Event (General Level), Crash Type, and Involved Vehicle Type

SingleVehicle 

Crash

Multivehicle Crash Total

Truck Truck Other 

Vehicle Total Truck Other Vehicle Total

Critical Event 

(General Level) 

# % # % # % # % # % # % # % 

This vehicle loss 

of control 17,917 47 4,117 4 7,468 7 11,585 6 22,034 16 7,468 7 29,502 12

This vehicle 

traveling 15,545 41 19,884 19 24,125 24 44,008 22 35,429 25 24,125 24 59,553 25

Other motor 

vehicle in lane 638 2 34,009 33 23,293 23 57,302 28 34,647 25 23,293 23 57,941 24

Other motor 

vehicle 

encroaching into 

lane 692 2 23,806 23 15,974 16 39,780 20 24,498 17 15,974 16 40,472 17

Pedestrian, 

pedacyclist, or 

other 

nonmotorist 2,058 5 112 0 0 0 112 0 2,170 2 0 0 2,170 1

Object or animal 735 2 59 0 440 0 498 0 794 1 440 0 1,233 1

Other (specify) 542 1 1,367 1 1,031 1 2,398 1 1,909 1 1,031 1 2,940 1

This vehicle not 

involved in first 

harmful event 0 0 19,720 19 27,497 28 47,217 23 19,720 14 27,497 28 47,217 20

Total 38,127 100 103,074 100 99,828 100 202,902 100 141,200 100 99,828 100 241,028 100

Source: NHTSA, NCSA, LTCCS. Study Time Span: April 1, 2001 - December 31, 2003

The specific level of the critical event provides more detail about the crash than does the general 

level of the critical event. In Table 11, each general level of the critical event is stratified into 

the applicable specific levels. Table 11 has critical event row categories (general level by 

specific level), with columns that are stratified by crash type (single-vehicle versus multivehicle) 

and vehicle type (large truck versus other vehicle). For example, for vehicles where the general 

level of the critical event is coded as “this vehicle loss of control,” Table 11 shows that specific 

level categories such as “traveling too fast for conditions” and “cargo shift” make up 58 percent 

and 8 percent respectively. Sixty-five percent of large trucks and 36 percent of other vehicles 

were “traveling too fast for conditions” and 11 percent of large trucks and zero percent of other 

vehicles experienced a “cargo shift.” 
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 19

Examples of the outcomes of the critical event are listed below and shown in Table 11: 

• Among single-vehicle crashes where the general level of the critical event was “this 

vehicle loss of control,” the specific level category “traveling too fast for conditions” 

accounted for 67 percent of the large trucks involved. 

• For crashes where the general level of the critical event was “this vehicle traveling,” the 

specific level category “off the edge of the road on the right side” was seen for 57 percent 

of large trucks in single-vehicle crashes, and only 2 percent of large trucks in 

multivehicle crashes, while “over the lane line on left side of travel lane” was seen for 1 

percent of the large trucks in single-vehicle crashes, 27 percent of large trucks in 

multivehicle crashes, and 41 percent of other vehicles in multivehicle crashes. 

• “Traveling in same direction with higher speed” was a specific level category under the 

general level category of “other motor vehicle in lane.” In multivehicle crashes, this 

specific level category was seen for 39 percent of large trucks and 50 percent of other 

vehicles. 

• In multivehicle crashes with a general level of “other motor vehicle encroaching into 

lane,” the distribution of specific level categories for both large trucks and other vehicles 

were quite similar. 

Table 11 

Weighted Number of Involved Vehicles 

By Critical Event (General Level and Specific Level), 

Crash Type and Involved Vehicle Type 

SingleVehicle 

Crash

Multivehicle Crash Total

Truck Truck Other 

Vehicle Total Truck Other Vehicle Total

Critical Event 

(General Level 

and Specific 

Level) 

# % # % # % # % # % # % # % 

This vehicle loss of control 

Blow out / flat 

tire, (specify 

blow out / flat, 

location / make) 294 2 344 8 930 12 1,274 11 638 3 930 12 1,568 5

Disabling 

vehicle failure 

(e.g., wheel fell 

off) Specify: 1,219 7 130 3 0 0 130 1 1,349 6 0 0 1,349 5

Non-disabling 

vehicle problem 

(e.g., hood flew 

up) Specify: 220 1 47 1 0 0 47 0 267 1 0 0 267 1
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 20

SingleVehicle 

Crash

Multivehicle Crash Total

Truck Truck Other 

Vehicle Total Truck Other Vehicle Total

Critical Event 

(General Level 

and Specific 

Level)

# % # % # % # % # % # % # % 

This vehicle loss of control (Continued) 

Poor road 

conditions 

(puddle, pot 

hole, ice, etc.) 

Specify: 216 1 13 0 991 13 1,004 9 229 1 991 13 1,220 4

Traveling too 

fast for 

conditions 11,998 67 2,340 57 2,716 36 5,056 44 14,338 65 2,716 36 17,054 58

Jacknife Event 436 2 1,044 25 0 0 1,044 9 1,479 7 0 0 1,479 5

Other cause of 

control loss 

(specify) 1,219 7 135 3 1,965 26 2,099 18 1,353 6 1,965 26 3,318 11

Unknown cause 

of control loss 0 0 0 0 867 12 867 7 0 0 867 12 867 3

Cargo Shift 2,316 13 65 2 0 0 65 1 2,381 11 0 0 2,381 8

Sub Total 17,917 100 4,117 100 7,468 100 11,585 100 22,034 100 7,468 100 29,502 100

This vehicle traveling

Over the lane 

line on left side 

of travel lane 180 1 5,307 27 9,921 41 15,228 35 5,487 15 9,921 41 15,408 26

Over the lane 

line on right 

side of travel 

lane 450 3 4,422 22 2,242 9 6,665 15 4,872 14 2,242 9 7,114 12

Off the edge of 

the road on the 

left side 5,382 35 227 1 1,946 8 2,173 5 5,610 16 1,946 8 7,556 13

Off the edge of 

the road on the 

right side 8,816 57 459 2 790 3 1,249 3 9,276 26 790 3 10,065 17

End departure 125 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 125 0 0 0 125 0

Turning left at 

intersection 420 3 2,619 13 5,101 21 7,720 18 3,040 9 5,101 21 8,141 14

Turning right at 

intersection 171 1 1,428 7 464 2 1,892 4 1,599 5 464 2 2,063 3

Crossing over 

(passing 

through) 

intersection 0 0 4,884 25 3,230 13 8,114 18 4,884 14 3,230 13 8,114 14

This vehicle 

decelerating 0 0 537 3 430 2 967 2 537 2 430 2 967 2

Sub Total 15,545 100 19,884 100 24,125 100 44,008 100 35,429 100 24,125 100 59,553 100
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 21

SingleVehicle 

Crash

Multivehicle Crash Total

Truck Truck Other 

Vehicle Total Truck Other Vehicle Total

Critical Event 

(General Level 

and Specific 

Level)

# % # % # % # % # % # % # % 

Other motor vehicle in lane

Other vehicle 

stopped 0 0 8,407 25 4,140 18 12,547 22 8,407 24 4,140 18 12,547 22

Traveling in 

same direction 

with low steady 

speed 0 0 3,280 10 3,590 15 6,870 12 3,280 9 3,590 15 6,870 12

Traveling in 

same direction 

while 

decelerating 638 100 5,215 15 2,928 13 8,143 14 5,854 17 2,928 13 8,782 15

Traveling in 

same direction 

with higher 

speed 0 0 13,167 39 11,758 50 24,926 43 13,167 38 11,758 50 24,926 43

Traveling in 

opposite 

direction 0 0 3,583 11 625 3 4,209 7 3,583 10 625 3 4,209 7

In crossover 0 0 356 1 50 0 406 1 356 1 50 0 406 1

Backing 0 0 0 0 201 1 201 0 0 0 201 1 201 0

Sub Total 638 100 34,009 100 23,293 100 57,302 100 34,647 100 23,293 100 57,941 100

Other motor vehicle encroaching into lane

From adjacent 

lane (same 

direction) - over 

left lane line 184 27 5,183 22 4,185 26 9,368 24 5,367 22 4,185 26 9,552 24

From adjacent 

lane (same 

direction -over 

right lane line) 508 73 6,261 26 4,019 25 10,280 26 6,769 28 4,019 25 10,788 27

From opposite 

direction-over 

left lane line 0 0 6,134 26 3,844 24 9,978 25 6,134 25 3,844 24 9,978 25

From opposite 

direction -over 

right lane line 0 0 61 0 128 1 188 0 61 0 128 1 188 0

From crossing 

street, across 

path 0 0 3,916 16 2,555 16 6,471 16 3,916 16 2,555 16 6,471 16

From crossing 

street, turning 

into same 

direction 0 0 60 0 398 2 458 1 60 0 398 2 458 1
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 22

SingleVehicle 

Crash

Multivehicle Crash Total

Truck Truck Other 

Vehicle Total Truck Other Vehicle Total

Critical Event 

(General Level 

and Specific 

Level)

# % # % # % # % # % # % # % 

Other motor vehicle encroaching into lane (Continued)

From crossing 

street ,turning 

into opposite 

direction 0 0 1,665 7 243 2 1,908 5 1,665 7 243 2 1,908 5

From driveway, 

turning into 

same direction 0 0 131 1 30 0 161 0 131 1 30 0 161 0

From driveway, 

across path 0 0 160 1 437 3 597 2 160 1 437 3 597 1

From driveway, 

turning into 

opposite 

direction 0 0 235 1 136 1 371 1 235 1 136 1 371 1

Sub Total 692 100 23,806 100 15,974 100 39,780 100 24,498 100 15,974 100 40,472 100

Pedestrian, pedalcyclist, or other nonmotorist

Pedestrian in 

roadway 1,307 64 112 100 0 0 112 100 1,419 65 0 0 1,419 65

Pedestrian 

approaching 

roadway 134 7 0 0 0 0 0 0 134 6 0 0 134 6

Pedalcyclist or 

other 

nonmotorist in 

roadway 

(specify): 617 30 0 0 0 0 0 0 617 28 0 0 617 28

Sub Total 2,058 100 112 100 0 0 112 100 2,170 100 0 0 2,170 100

Object or animal

Animal in 

roadway 260 35 0 0 0 0 0 0 260 33 0 0 260 21

Object in 

roadway 475 65 59 100 440 100 498 100 533 67 440 100 973 79

Sub Total 735 100 59 100 440 100 498 100 794 100 440 100 1,233 100

Other (specify)

Other (specify) 542 100 1,367 100 1,031 100 2,398 100 1,909 100 1,031 100 2,940 100

Sub Total 542 100 1,367 100 1,031 100 2,398 100 1,909 100 1,031 100 2,940 100

This vehicle not involved in first harmful event

Not involved 

first harmful 

event 0 0 19,720 100 27,497 100 47,217 100 19,720 100 27,497 100 47,217 100

Sub Total 0 0 19,720 100 27,497 100 47,217 100 19,720 100 27,497 100 47,217 100

Grand Total 38,127 100 103,074 100 99,828 100 202,902 100 141,200 100 99,828 100 241,028 100

Source: NHTSA, NCSA, LTCCS. Study Time Span: April 1, 2001 - December 31, 2003
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 23

At the general level, the critical reason was “no driver error” for 60 percent of large trucks in 

multivehicle crashes, and only 4 percent of large trucks in single-vehicle crashes (see Table 12). 

In single-vehicle crashes, driver-related factors (including “Physical Driver Factor,” “Driver 

Recognition Error,” “Driver Decision Factor,” and “Driver Performance Error”) accounted for 

over 81 percent of the critical reasons for large trucks, while both vehicle-related factors (13%) 

and environment-related factors (2%) were seen less likely than driver-related factors. 

Table 12

Weighted Number of Involved Vehicles 

By Critical Reason (General Level), Crash Type, and Vehicle Type 

SingleVehicle 

Crash

Multivehicle Crash Total

Truck Truck Other 

Vehicle Total Truck Other Vehicle Total

By Critical 

Reason (General 

Level) 

# % # % # % # % # % # % # % 

No Driver Error 1,447 4 61,913 60 58,252 58 120,164 59 63,360 45 58,252 58 121,612 50

Physical Driver 

Factor 7,744 20 1,377 1 6,214 6 7,590 4 9,121 6 6,214 6 15,335 6

Driver 

Recognition 

Factor 6,309 17 15,883 15 12,421 12 28,304 14 22,193 16 12,421 12 34,613 14

Driver Decision 

Factor 12,621 33 16,886 16 11,106 11 27,992 14 29,507 21 11,106 11 40,612 17

Driver 

Performance 

Factor 4,425 12 2,758 3 7,617 8 10,375 5 7,182 5 7,617 8 14,800 6

Vehicle Related 

Factor 4,831 13 2,956 3 1,577 2 4,533 2 7,787 6 1,577 2 9,364 4

Environment - 

Highway 599 2 950 1 510 1 1,460 1 1,549 1 510 1 2,059 1

Environment - 

Weather 127 0 114 0 541 1 655 0 241 0 541 1 782 0

Unknown 

Reason 23 0 238 0 1,591 2 1,829 1 261 0 1,591 2 1,852 1

Total 38,127 100 103,074 100 99,828 100 202,902 100 141,200 100 99,828 100 241,028 100

Source: NHTSA, NCSA, LTCCS. Study Time Span: April 1, 2001 - December 31, 2003
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 24

Table 13, seen below, shows the distribution of the critical reason (general level and specific 

level). The “critical reason” is the immediate reason for the critical event, and it describes why 

the critical event occurred. As stated earlier, the “critical event” of the crash is defined as the 

event that immediately led to the crash. One and only one critical event is defined for each 

crash. The critical event is the action or event that made the collision unavoidable. 

Out of the 240,000 vehicles that were involved in the LTCCS, the critical reason was coded for 

only the 119,000 vehicles that were coded for a critical event. These 119,000 vehicles are shown 

separately in Table 14, which displays a percentage breakdown of the critical reasons (specific 

level) for the vehicles for which the critical event was coded. There are dozens of specific level 

categories for the critical reason, including “illegal maneuver,” “brakes failed,” “external 

distraction,” and “heart attack or other physical impairment of the ability to act.” “Too fast for 

curve/turn” was recorded for 12 percent of large trucks, and zero percent of other vehicles, while 

“inadequate surveillance (e.g., failed to look, looked but did not see)” was recorded for 12 

percent of large trucks and 10 percent of other vehicles (see Table 14). 

Table 13

Weighted Number of Involved Vehicles 

By Critical Reason (General Level, and Specific Level), Crash Type and Vehicle Type

SingleVehicle 

Crash

Multivehicle Crash Total

Truck Truck Other 

Vehicle Total Truck Other Vehicle Total

By Critical 

Reason (General 

Level, and 

Specific Level)

# % # % # % # % # % # % # % 

No Driver Error

Critical event 

not coded to this 

vehicle 1,447 4 61,913 60 58,252 58 120,164 59 63,360 45 58,252 58 121,612 50

Sub Total 1,447 4 61,913 60 58,252 58 120,164 59 63,360 45 58,252 58 121,612 50

Physical Driver Factor

Sleep, that is, 

actually asleep 4,876 13 454 0 3,755 4 4,210 2 5,330 4 3,755 4 9,085 4

Heart attack or 

other physical 

impairment of 

the ability to act 2,242 6 872 1 2,335 2 3,207 2 3,114 2 2,335 2 5,449 2

Other critical 

nonperformance 

(specify) 138 0 50 0 0 0 50 0 188 0 0 0 188 0

Unknown 

critical nonperformance 489 1 0 0 123 0 123 0 489 0 123 0 612 0

Sub Total 7,744 20 1,377 1 6,214 6 7,590 4 9,121 6 6,214 6 15,335 6
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 25

SingleVehicle 

Crash

Multivehicle Crash Total

Truck Truck Other 

Vehicle Total Truck Other Vehicle Total

By Critical 

Reason (General 

Level, and 

Specific Level)

# % # % # % # % # % # % # % 

Driver Recognition Factor

Inattention (e.g., 

daydreaming) 2,253 6 2,408 2 1,966 2 4,374 2 4,660 3 1,966 2 6,626 3

Internal 

distraction 1,285 3 1,247 1 3,487 3 4,734 2 2,532 2 3,487 3 6,020 2

External 

distraction 341 1 1,606 2 1,062 1 2,668 1 1,947 1 1,062 1 3,009 1

Inadequate 

surveillance 

(e.g., failed to 

look, looked but 

did not see) 1,376 4 8,016 8 4,145 4 12,162 6 9,392 7 4,145 4 13,537 6

Other 

recognition 

error (specify) 0 0 0 0 240 0 240 0 0 0 240 0 240 0

Unknown 

recognition 

error 1,055 3 2,605 3 1,520 2 4,126 2 3,661 3 1,520 2 5,181 2

Sub Total 6,309 17 15,883 15 12,421 12 28,304 14 22,193 16 12,421 12 34,613 14

Driver Decision Factor

Too fast for 

conditions to be 

able to respond 

to unexpected 

actions of other 

road users 

(specify) 2,459 6 4,717 5 3,786 4 8,503 4 7,176 5 3,786 4 10,961 5

Too slow for 

traffic stream 0 0 0 0 148 0 148 0 0 0 148 0 148 0

Misjudgment of 

gap or other's 

speed 62 0 2,107 2 1,700 2 3,807 2 2,169 2 1,700 2 3,869 2

Following too 

closely to 

respond to 

unexpected 

actions 144 0 3,153 3 487 0 3,640 2 3,296 2 487 0 3,784 2

False 

assumption of 

other road user's 

actions 0 0 1,325 1 877 1 2,202 1 1,325 1 877 1 2,202 1

Illegal 

maneuver 157 0 3,424 3 2,889 3 6,313 3 3,581 3 2,889 3 6,470 3
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 26

SingleVehicle 

Crash

Multivehicle Crash Total

Truck Truck Other 

Vehicle Total Truck Other Vehicle Total

By Critical 

Reason (General 

Level, and Specific 

Level)

# % # % # % # % # % # % # % 

Driver Decision Factor (Continued)

Inadequate 

evasive action, 

e.g., braking only, 

not braking and 

steering 

0 0 528 1 128 0 656 0 528 0 128 0 656 0

Aggressive 

driving behavior 814 2 205 0 803 1 1,008 0 1,019 1 803 1 1,822 1

Other decision 

error (specify) 485 1 609 1 50 0 659 0 1,094 1 50 0 1,144 0

Unknown 

decision error 0 0 7 0 59 0 66 0 7 0 59 0 66 0

Too fast for 

curve/turn 8,501 22 811 1 178 0 989 0 9,312 7 178 0 9,490 4

Sub Total 12,621 33 16,886 16 11,106 11 27,992 14 29,507 21 11,106 11 40,612 17

Driver Performance Factor

Panic/Freezing 0 0 2 0 0 0 2 0 2 0 0 0 2 0

Overcompensation 1,596 4 355 0 2,503 3 2,859 1 1,952 1 2,503 3 4,455 2

Poor directional 

control e.g., 

failing to control 

vehicle with skill 

ordinarily 

expected 

1,512 4 745 1 1,008 1 1,753 1 2,257 2 1,008 1 3,266 1

Unknown 

performance error 

0 0 0 0 83 0 83 0 0 0 83 0 83 0

Type of driver 

error unknown 1,316 3 1,655 2 4,023 4 5,678 3 2,971 2 4,023 4 6,994 3

Sub Total 4,425 12 2,758 3 7,617 8 10,375 5 7,182 5 7,617 8 14,800 6

Vehicle Related Factor

Tires/wheels 

failed 387 1 416 0 927 1 1,343 1 803 1 927 1 1,730 1

Brakes failed 323 1 395 0 159 0 555 0 719 1 159 0 878 0

Steering failed 69 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 69 0 0 0 69 0

Cargo shifted 2,503 7 233 0 0 0 233 0 2,736 2 0 0 2,736 1

Trailer 

attachment failed 

0 0 19 0 0 0 19 0 19 0 0 0 19 0
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 27

SingleVehicle 

Crash

Multivehicle Crash Total

Truck Truck Other 

Vehicle Total Truck Other Vehicle Total

By Critical 

Reason (General 

Level, and 

Specific Level)

# % # % # % # % # % # % # % 

Vehicle Related Factor

Suspension 

failed 791 2 13 0 0 0 13 0 803 1 0 0 803 0

Body, doors, 

hood failed 0 0 59 0 0 0 59 0 59 0 0 0 59 0

Other vehicle 

failure (specify) 0 0 59 0 427 0 486 0 59 0 427 0 486 0

Unknown 

vehicle failures 0 0 0 0 61 0 61 0 0 0 61 0 61 0

Degraded 

braking 

capability 758 2 1,740 2 0 0 1,740 1 2,498 2 0 0 2,498 1

Transmission/en

gine failure 0 0 23 0 2 0 26 0 23 0 2 0 26 0

Sub Total 4,831 13 2,956 3 1,577 2 4,533 2 7,787 6 1,577 2 9,364 4

Environment – Highway

Signs/signals 

missing 0 0 791 1 0 0 791 0 791 1 0 0 791 0

View obstructed 

by other 

vehicles 0 0 0 0 39 0 39 0 0 0 39 0 39 0

Road design - 

roadway 

geometry (e.g., 

ramp curvature) 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 2 0

Road design - 

other 356 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 356 0 0 0 356 0

Slick roads (low 

friction road 

surface due to 

ice, loose 

debris, any other 

cause) 240 1 159 0 471 0 630 0 400 0 471 0 870 0

Sub Total 599 2 950 1 510 1 1,460 1 1,549 1 510 1 2,059 1

Environment – Weather

Fog 0 0 7 0 0 0 7 0 7 0 0 0 7 0

Wind gust 127 0 0 0 34 0 34 0 127 0 34 0 162 0

Glare 0 0 107 0 507 1 613 0 107 0 507 1 613 0

Sub Total 127 0 114 0 541 1 655 0 241 0 541 1 782 0
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 28

SingleVehicle 

Crash

Multivehicle Crash Total

Truck Truck Other 

Vehicle Total Truck Other Vehicle Total

By Critical 

Reason (General 

Level, and 

Specific Level)

# % # % # % # % # % # % # % 

Unknown Reason

Unknown 

reason for 

critical event 23 0 238 0 1,591 2 1,829 1 261 0 1,591 2 1,852 1

Sub Total 23 0 238 0 1,591 2 1,829 1 261 0 1,591 2 1,852 1

Grand Total 38,127 100 103,074 100 99,828 100 202,902 100 141,200 100 99,828 100 241,028 100

Source: NHTSA, NCSA, LTCCS. Study Time Span: April 1, 2001 - December 31, 2003

Table 14

Weighted Number of Involved Vehicles 

By Critical Reason (General Level, and Specific Level), Crash Type and Vehicle Type 

WHERE CRITICAL EVENT WAS CODED

SingleVehicle 

Crash

Multivehicle Crash Total

Truck Truck Other 

Vehicle Total Truck Other Vehicle Total

By Critical 

Reason (General 

Level, and 

Specific Level)

# % # % # % # % # % # % # % 

Physical Driver Factor

Sleep, that is, 

actually asleep 4,876 13 454 1 3,755 9 4,210 5 5,330 7 3,755 9 9,085 8

Heart attack or 

other physical 

impairment of 

the ability to act 2,242 6 872 2 2,335 6 3,207 4 3,114 4 2,335 6 5,449 5

Other critical 

nonperformance 

(specify) 138 0 50 0 0 0 50 0 188 0 0 0 188 0

Unknown 

critical nonperformance 489 1 0 0 123 0 123 0 489 1 123 0 612 1

Sub Total 7,744 21 1,377 3 6,214 15 7,590 9 9,121 12 6,214 15 15,335 13

Driver Recognition Factor

Inattention 

(e.g.., 2,253 6 2,408 6 1,966 5 4,374 5 4,660 6 1,966 5 6,626 6

Internal 

distraction 1,285 4 1,247 3 3,487 8 4,734 6 2,532 3 3,487 8 6,020 5
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 29

SingleVehicle 

Crash

Multivehicle Crash Total

Truck Truck Other 

Vehicle Total Truck Other Vehicle Total

By Critical 

Reason (General 

Level, and 

Specific Level)

# % # % # % # % # % # % # % 

Driver Recognition Factor (Continued)

External 

distraction 341 1 1,606 4 1,062 3 2,668 3 1,947 3 1,062 3 3,009 3

Inadequate 

surveillance 

(e.g., failed to 

look, looked but 

did not see) 1,376 4 8,016 19 4,145 10 12,162 15 9,392 12 4,145 10 13,537 11

Other 

recognition 

error (specify) 0 0 0 0 240 1 240 0 0 0 240 1 240 0

Unknown 

recognition 

error 1,055 3 2,605 6 1,520 4 4,126 5 3,661 5 1,520 4 5,181 4

Sub Total 6,309 17 15,883 39 12,421 30 28,304 34 22,193 29 12,421 30 34,613 29

Driver Decision Factor

Too fast for 

conditions to be 

able to respond 

to unexpected 

actions of other 

road users 

(specify) 2,459 7 4,717 11 3,786 9 8,503 10 7,176 9 3,786 9 10,961 9

Too slow for 

traffic stream 0 0 0 0 148 0 148 0 0 0 148 0 148 0

Misjudgment of 

gap or other's 

speed 62 0 2,107 5 1,700 4 3,807 5 2,169 3 1,700 4 3,869 3

Following too 

closely to 

respond to 

unexpected 

actions 144 0 3,153 8 487 1 3,640 4 3,296 4 487 1 3,784 3

False 

assumption of 

other road user's 

actions 0 0 1,325 3 877 2 2,202 3 1,325 2 877 2 2,202 2

Illegal 

maneuver 157 0 3,424 8 2,889 7 6,313 8 3,581 5 2,889 7 6,470 5
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 30

SingleVehicle 

Crash

Multivehicle Crash Total

Truck Truck Other 

Vehicle Total Truck Other Vehicle Total

By Critical 

Reason (General 

Level, and 

Specific Level)

# % # % # % # % # % # % # % 

Driver Decision Factor (Continued)

Inadequate 

evasive action, 

e.g., braking 

only, not 

braking and 

steering 0 0 528 1 128 0 656 1 528 1 128 0 656 1

Aggressive 

driving behavior 814 2 205 0 803 2 1,008 1 1,019 1 803 2 1,822 2

Other decision 

error (specify) 485 1 609 1 50 0 659 1 1,094 1 50 0 1,144 1

Unknown 

decision error 0 0 7 0 59 0 66 0 7 0 59 0 66 0

Too fast for 

curve/turn 8,501 23 811 2 178 0 989 1 9,312 12 178 0 9,490 8

Sub Total 12,621 34 16,886 41 11,106 27 27,992 34 29,507 38 11,106 27 40,612 34

Driver Performance Factor

Panic/Freezing 0 0 2 0 0 0 2 0 2 0 0 0 2 0

Overcompensati

on 1,596 4 355 1 2,503 6 2,859 3 1,952 3 2,503 6 4,455 4

Poor directional 

control e.g., 

failing to 

control vehicle 

with skill 

ordinarily 

expected 1,512 4 745 2 1,008 2 1,753 2 2,257 3 1,008 2 3,266 3

Unknown 

performance 

error 0 0 0 0 83 0 83 0 0 0 83 0 83 0

Type of driver 

error unknown 1,316 4 1,655 4 4,023 10 5,678 7 2,971 4 4,023 10 6,994 6

Sub Total 4,425 12 2,758 7 7,617 18 10,375 13 7,182 9 7,617 18 14,800 12

Vehicle Related Factor

Tires/wheels 

failed 387 1 416 1 927 2 1,343 2 803 1 927 2 1,730 1

Brakes failed 323 1 395 1 159 0 555 1 719 1 159 0 878 1

Steering failed 69 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 69 0 0 0 69 0

Cargo shifted 2,503 7 233 1 0 0 233 0 2,736 4 0 0 2,736 2
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 31

SingleVehicle 

Crash

Multivehicle Crash Total

Truck Truck Other 

Vehicle Total Truck Other Vehicle Total

By Critical 

Reason (General 

Level, and 

Specific Level)

# % # % # % # % # % # % # % 

Vehicle Related Factor (Continued)

Trailer 

attachment 

failed 0 0 19 0 0 0 19 0 19 0 0 0 19 0

Suspension 

failed 791 2 13 0 0 0 13 0 803 1 0 0 803 1

Body, doors, 

hood failed 0 0 59 0 0 0 59 0 59 0 0 0 59 0

Other vehicle 

failure (specify) 0 0 59 0 427 1 486 1 59 0 427 1 486 0

Unknown 

vehicle failures 0 0 0 0 61 0 61 0 0 0 61 0 61 0

Degraded 

braking 

capability 758 2 1,740 4 0 0 1,740 2 2,498 3 0 0 2,498 2

Transmission/ 

engine failure 0 0 23 0 2 0 26 0 23 0 2 0 26 0

Sub Total 4,831 13 2,956 7 1,577 4 4,533 5 7,787 10 1,577 4 9,364 8

Environment – Highway

Signs/signals 

missing 0 0 791 2 0 0 791 1 791 1 0 0 791 1

View obstructed 

by other 

vehicles 0 0 0 0 39 0 39 0 0 0 39 0 39 0

Road design - 

roadway 

geometry (e.g., 

ramp curvature) 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 2 0

Road design - 

other 356 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 356 0 0 0 356 0

Slick roads (low 

friction road 

surface due to 

ice, loose 

debris, any other 

cause) 240 1 159 0 471 1 630 1 400 1 471 1 870 1

Sub Total 599 2 950 2 510 1 1,460 2 1,549 2 510 1 2,059 2
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 32

SingleVehicle 

Crash

Multivehicle Crash Total

Truck Truck Other 

Vehicle Total Truck Other Vehicle Total

By Critical 

Reason (General 

Level, and 

Specific Level)

# % # % # % # % # % # % # % 

Environment – Weather

Fog 0 0 7 0 0 0 7 0 7 0 0 0 7 0

Wind gust 127 0 0 0 34 0 34 0 127 0 34 0 162 0

Glare 0 0 107 0 507 1 613 1 107 0 507 1 613 1

Sub Total 127 0 114 0 541 1 655 1 241 0 541 1 782 1

Unknown Reason

Unknown 

reason for 

critical event 23 0 238 1 1,591 4 1,829 2 261 0 1,591 4 1,852 2

Sub Total 23 0 238 1 1,591 4 1,829 2 261 0 1,591 4 1,852 2

Grand Total 36,680 100 41,161 100 41,576 100 82,737 100 77,840 100 41,576 100 119,417 100

Source: NHTSA, NCSA, LTCCS. Study Time Span: April 1, 2001 - December 31, 2003 

Environment, Location, and Pre-Crash Variables 

Other examples of data collected in the LTCCS are mentioned briefly here. These variables are 

all counted at the vehicle level. The vehicle-level variables mentioned throughout this chapter 

are just a small sample of the information gathered in the LTCCS that is measured on the vehicle 

level. 

As seen in Table 15, most of the vehicles in the LTCCS faced no adverse environmental 

conditions (84%), while 14 percent were in the rain, and 1 percent in the snow. Three-quarters 

of the vehicles traveled in the daylight, compared to only 9 percent that traveled in the dark and 

12 percent that traveled in a “dark, but lighted” lighting condition (see Table 16). 

Table 15

Weighted Number of Involved Vehicles

By Crash Environmental Condition

Rain Snow Wind Gusts 

Other 

Conditions Fog Sleet 

No Adverse 

Conditions Other Total 

# % # % # % # % # % # % # % # % # %

33,679 14 1,974 1 69 0 2,790 1 230 0 69 0 201,800 84 416 0 241,028 100

Source: NHTSA, NCSA, LTCCS. Study Time Span: April 1, 2001 - December 31, 2003
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 33

Table 16

Weighted Number of Involved Vehicles

By Crash Lighting Condition

Daylight Dark 

Dark, but 

lighted Dawn Dusk Total 

# % # % # % # % # % # % 

181,475 75 21,897 9 28,656 12 5,658 2 3,343 1 241,028 100

Source: NHTSA, NCSA, LTCCS. Study Time Span: April 1, 2001 - December 31, 2003

Regarding road alignment as shown in Table 17, 79 percent of the vehicles in multivehicle 

crashes traveled straight at the time of the crash, while 10 percent curved to the left and 11 

percent curved to the right. The road alignment was quite different in single-vehicle crashes, 

where 43 percent of the large trucks traveled straight, and 21 percent curved to the left, and 37 

percent curved to the right. As expected, single-vehicle crashes were much more likely to occur 

on roads that were curved, compared with multivehicle crashes. 

The road profile, shown in Table 18, was recorded as “level” for 64 percent of the vehicles in 

multivehicle crashes, and “uphill grade (> 2 %)” and “downhill grade (> 2%)” were 16 percent 

and 16 percent, respectively. Compared to multivehicle crashes, single-vehicle crashes were 

more likely to occur on roads that were “uphill grade (>2 %)” (21%) or “downhill grade (> 2%)” 

(26%), suggesting that the profile of the road is more likely to play a role in a single-vehicle 

crash than a multivehicle crash. 

Table 17

Weighted Number of Involved Vehicles

By Road Alignment, Crash Type, and Involved Vehicle Type

SingleVehicle 

Crash

Multivehicle Crash Total

Truck Truck Other 

Vehicle Total Truck Other Vehicle Total

Road Alignment 

# % # % # % # % # % # % # % 

Straight 16,261 43 82,753 80 77,631 78 160,384 79 99,014 70 77,631 78 176,645 73

Curve right 13,991 37 10,320 10 12,033 12 22,353 11 24,311 17 12,033 12 36,343 15

Curve left 7,875 21 10,001 10 10,165 10 20,165 10 17,875 13 10,165 10 28,040 12

Total 38,127 100 103,074 100 99,828 100 202,902 100 141,200 100 99,828 100 241,028 100

Source: NHTSA, NCSA, LTCCS. Study Time Span: April 1, 2001 - December 31, 2003 
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 34

Table 18

Weighted Number of Involved Vehicles

By Road Profile, Crash Type, and Involved Vehicle Type

SingleVehicle 

Crash

Multivehicle Crash Total

Truck Truck Other 

Vehicle Total Truck Other Vehicle Total

Road Profile 

# % # % # % # % # % # % # % 

Level 19,007 50 67,236 65 63,571 64 130,806 64 86,243 61 63,571 64 149,813 62

Uphill grade 

(>2%) 8,180 21 15,257 15 16,797 17 32,054 16 23,437 17 16,797 17 40,234 17

Hill crest 540 1 2,733 3 3,797 4 6,530 3 3,272 2 3,797 4 7,069 3

Downhill 

grade (>2%) 9,916 26 17,476 17 15,135 15 32,612 16 27,392 19 15,135 15 42,528 18

Sag 427 1 236 0 177 0 413 0 663 0 177 0 840 0

Unknown 58 0 135 0 351 0 486 0 193 0 351 0 544 0

Total 38,127 100 103,074 100 99,828 100 202,902 100 141,200 100 99,828 100 241,028 100

Source: NHTSA, NCSA, LTCCS. Study Time Span: April 1, 2001 - December 31, 2003 

The distribution of the “pre-crash movement” categories varied between large trucks and other 

vehicles. Table 19 shows that 54 percent of large trucks and 42 percent of other vehicles were 

coded as “going straight.” While large trucks were roughly one-third as likely to be “stopped in 

a traffic lane” (7%) compared to other vehicles (20%), large trucks were more than twice as 

likely to be “negotiating a curve” (19%) as opposed to other vehicles (9%). 

In single-vehicle crashes, the pre-crash movement was “negotiating a curve” for 44 percent of 

large trucks. Among multivehicle crashes, “negotiating a curve” was seen much less often, only 

in 10 percent of large trucks and 9 percent of other vehicles. 
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 35

Table 19

Weighted Number of Vehicles 

By Pre-Crash Movement, Crash Type and Involved Vehicle Type

SingleVehicle 

Crash

Multivehicle Crash Total

Truck Truck Other 

Vehicle Total Truck Other Vehicle Total

Pre-Crash 

Movement

# % # % # % # % # % # % # % 

No driver 

present 0 0 2,496 2 214 0 2,710 1 2,496 2 214 0 2,710 1

Going Straight 13,850 36 62,319 60 41,477 42 103,797 51 76,169 54 41,477 42 117,646 49

Decelerating in 

traffic lane 1,375 4 5,750 6 10,380 10 16,130 8 7,125 5 10,380 10 17,505 7

Accelerating in 

traffic lane 815 2 2,216 2 1,276 1 3,492 2 3,031 2 1,276 1 4,307 2

Starting in 

traffic lane 139 0 326 0 910 1 1,236 1 465 0 910 1 1,375 1

Stopped in 

traffic lane 329 1 9,140 9 20,114 20 29,254 14 9,469 7 20,114 20 29,583 12

Passing or 

overtaking 

another vehicle 659 2 1,992 2 4,364 4 6,357 3 2,651 2 4,364 4 7,015 3

Disabled or 

parked in travel 

lane 0 0 2 0 2 0 5 0 2 0 2 0 5 0

Turning right 461 1 527 1 0 0 527 0 987 1 0 0 987 0

Turning left 1,023 3 1,971 2 1,445 1 3,416 2 2,994 2 1,445 1 4,439 2

Making a U-turn 0 0 32 0 310 0 342 0 32 0 310 0 342 0

Backing up 

(other than for 

parking position) 26 0 179 0 73 0 253 0 205 0 73 0 279 0

Negotiating a 

curve 16,604 44 10,453 10 9,114 9 19,566 10 27,056 19 9,114 9 36,170 15

Changing lanes 1,028 3 2,592 3 4,333 4 6,925 3 3,619 3 4,333 4 7,952 3

Merging 30 0 248 0 517 1 765 0 278 0 517 1 795 0

Successful 

avoidance 

maneuver to a 

previous critical 

event 1,789 5 2,279 2 2,891 3 5,170 3 4,068 3 2,891 3 6,960 3

Other (specify) 0 0 544 1 839 1 1,383 1 544 0 839 1 1,383 1

Unknown 0 0 7 0 1,569 2 1,575 1 7 0 1,569 2 1,575 1

Total 38,127 100 103,074 100 99,828 100 202,902 100 141,200 100 99,828 100 241,028 100

Source: NHTSA, NCSA, LTCCS. Study Time Span: April 1, 2001 - December 31, 2003 
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 36

The most common pre-crash location for both large trucks (57%) and other vehicles (66%) was 

coded as “stayed in original travel lane.” This pre-crash location was seen nearly three times as 

often in multivehicle crashes (68%) than single-vehicle crashes (24%). Almost one-quarter of 

large trucks as well as other vehicles “stayed on roadway, but left original lane.” “Departed 

roadway” was the pre-crash location for 49 percent of vehicles in single-vehicle crashes and 5 

percent of vehicles in multivehicle crashes (see Table 20). 

Table 20

Weighted Number of Vehicles 

By Pre-Crash Location, Crash Type and Involved Vehicle Type

SingleVehicle 

Crash

Multivehicle Crash Total

Truck Truck Other 

Vehicle Total Truck Other Vehicle Total

Pre-Crash 

Location

# % # % # % # % # % # % # % 

No driver 

present 0 0 2,496 2 214 0 2,710 1 2,496 2 214 0 2,710 1

Stayed in 

original travel 

lane 9,261 24 71,543 69 66,089 66 137,633 68 80,805 57 66,089 66 146,894 61

Stayed on 

roadway but left 

original travel 

lane 8,614 23 23,958 23 23,876 24 47,834 24 32,572 23 23,876 24 56,448 23

Stayed on 

roadway, not 

known if left 

original travel 

lane 356 1 447 0 58 0 505 0 803 1 58 0 862 0

Departed 

roadway 18,748 49 2,544 2 6,999 7 9,543 5 21,292 15 6,999 7 28,291 12

Remained off 

roadway 260 1 471 0 53 0 524 0 731 1 53 0 784 0

Returned to 

roadway 875 2 374 0 1,713 2 2,087 1 1,249 1 1,713 2 2,962 1

Entered 

roadway 12 0 484 0 579 1 1,064 1 496 0 579 1 1,076 0

Unknown 0 0 756 1 245 0 1,001 0 756 1 245 0 1,001 0

Total 38,127 100 103,074 100 99,828 100 202,902 100 141,200 100 99,828 100 241,028 100

Source: NHTSA, NCSA, LTCCS. Study Time Span: April 1, 2001 - December 31, 2003 
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 37

VI. Driver Counts Available through the LTCCS Database

This section shows examples of data that exist in the LTCCS database, with the focus being 

driver characteristics. As shown throughout this report, the LTCCS provides extensive 

information about large-truck crashes. In addition to vital information about the drivers involved 

in the crash, the LTCCS has collected data on the vehicles involved in the crash and the 

characteristics surrounding the crash. 

The LTCCS gathered data from 2,078 vehicles involved in 963 crashes. When the counts from 

these crashes are weighted, they represent a total of 241,000 vehicles involved in 120,000 

crashes. Of the estimated 241,000 vehicles in the LTCCS, 141,000 are large trucks and 100,000 

are “other vehicles” (i.e., passenger cars, light trucks, vans, sport utility vehicles, and 

motorcycles). A driver was present in 99 percent (238,000) of the vehicles in this study. 

Information presented in this section includes driver age, driver restraint use, driver blood 

alcohol concentration, and the status of the driver seat air bag. These variables are examples of 

the plethora of driver variables available from the data collected in the LTCCS. 

Driver Tables

The age distribution of large-truck drivers was quite different than that of drivers of other 

vehicles, as shown in Table 21. While only 5 percent of large-truck drivers involved in the 

LTCCS were 25 or younger, a much larger 23 percent of the drivers of other vehicles were 25 or 

younger. There were no large-truck drivers in the LTCCS who were 75 or older, compared to 3 

percent of the drivers of other vehicles. 

The percent of large-truck drivers who were 25 to 34 (22%), 35 to 44 (27%), 45 to 54 (31%), and 

55 to 64 (10%) were higher than the corresponding percentages of drivers of other vehicles. 

Only 17 percent of the drivers of other vehicles were 45 to 54 years old, compared to the 31 

percent of large-truck drivers in this age category. The number of large-truck drivers who were 

45 to 54 was more than three times greater than the number of large-truck drivers of 55 to 64. 
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 38

Table 21

Weighted Number of Drivers

By Driver Age, Crash Type, and Involved Vehicle Body Type

SingleVehicle 

Crash

Multivehicle Crash Total

Truck Truck Other 

Vehicle Total Truck Other Vehicle Total

Driver Age

# % # % # % # % # % # % # % 

Other / 

Unknown 356 1 1,083 1 323 0 1,406 1 1,439 1 323 0 1,762 1

16-20 50 0 670 1 11,050 11 11,720 6 720 1 11,050 11 11,770 5

21-25 2,177 6 3,890 4 12,067 12 15,957 8 6,067 4 12,067 12 18,133 8

25-34 6,164 16 24,168 24 19,995 20 44,163 22 30,332 22 19,995 20 50,327 21

35-44 11,759 31 26,241 26 23,189 23 49,430 25 38,000 27 23,189 23 61,189 26

45-54 12,802 34 30,531 30 17,149 17 47,680 24 43,333 31 17,149 17 60,482 25

55-64 3,798 10 10,398 10 7,869 8 18,267 9 14,196 10 7,869 8 22,065 9

65-74 1,021 3 3,598 4 4,478 5 8,076 4 4,619 3 4,478 5 9,097 4

75 Or Older 0 0 0 0 3,352 3 3,352 2 0 0 3,352 3 3,352 1

Total 38,127 100 100,578 100 99,472 100 200,050 100 138,705 100 99,472 100 238,177 100

Source: NHTSA, NCSA, LTCCS. Study Time Span: April 1, 2001 - December 31, 2003 

The status of air bags in the drivers’ seats was quite different when comparing large-truck drivers 

to drivers of other vehicles. In 58 percent of large trucks, there was no air bag available in the 

driver’s seat, while police did not indicate driver air bag availability in an additional 31 percent 

of large trucks (see Table 22). While an air bag deployed in less than one-half of 1 percent of 

large trucks, air bags played a much larger role in protecting drivers of other vehicles. An air 

bag deployed for 24 percent of the drivers of these other vehicles. No driver air bag was 

available in only 21 percent of other vehicles, versus 58 percent of large trucks. 
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 39

Table 22

Weighted Count of Driver’s Seat Air Bag Status

By Crash Type and Involved Vehicle Type

SingleVehicle 

Crash

Multivehicle Crash Total

Truck 

Driver

Truck 

Driver

Other 

Vehicle 

Driver

Total Truck 

Driver

Other 

Vehicle 

Driver

Total

Driver's Seat 

Air Bag Status

# % # % # % # % # % # % # % 

No air bag 

available 22,105 58 58,820 58 21,837 21 80,657 40 80,925 58 21,837 21 102,763 42

Police did not 

indicate air bag 

availability/funct

ion 11,949 31 31,538 31 28,961 28 60,499 30 43,487 31 28,961 28 72,448 30

Deployed 0 0 24 0 25,218 24 25,242 12 24 0 25,218 24 25,242 10

Not deployed 1,637 4 4,301 4 22,864 22 27,165 13 5,939 4 22,864 22 28,802 12

Unknown if 

deployed 30 0 242 0 201 0 443 0 272 0 201 0 473 0

Police indicated 

'unknown' 2,440 6 5,722 6 3,997 4 9,718 5 8,161 6 3,997 4 12,158 5

Total 38,161 100 100,647 100 103,078 100 203,725 100 138,808 100 103,078 100 241,886 100

Source: NHTSA, NCSA, LTCCS. Study Time Span: April 1, 2001 - December 31, 2003 

While the status of air bags in the driver’s seat was very different between drivers of large trucks 

and drivers of other vehicles, the restraint use activated by the driver was much more 

homogeneous (see Table 23). Sixty-nine percent of large-truck drivers used a lap and shoulder 

belt, 21 percent were unrestrained, and 6 percent used a lap belt. Among drivers of other 

vehicles, the restraint use was quite similar (69% lap and shoulder belt, 21% unrestrained, and 3 

percent% lap belt). 

Large-truck drivers were much more likely to be restrained in a multivehicle crash (80% 

restrained, 14% unrestrained) than in a single-vehicle crash (59% restrained, 37% unrestrained). 

Belt use was unknown in 6 percent of all vehicles. 
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 40

Table 23

Weighted Count of Driver’s Restraint Use

By Crash Type and Involved Vehicle Type

SingleVehicle 

Crash

Multivehicle Crash Total

Truck Truck Other 

Vehicle Total Truck Other Vehicle Total

Driver’s 

Restraint Use 

# % # % # % # % # % # % # % 

Not used/ not 

available/ 

removed or 

destroyed 14,274 37 14,432 14 20,443 21 34,875 17 28,705 21 20,443 21 49,149 21

Inoperative 

(specify) 0 0 469 0 0 0 469 0 469 0 0 0 469 0

Lap belt 1,657 4 5,973 6 3,205 3 9,178 5 7,630 6 3,205 3 10,835 5

Lap and 

shoulder belt 21,070 55 74,050 74 68,353 69 142,403 71 95,120 69 68,353 69 163,473 69

Belt used - type 

unknown 0 0 129 0 186 0 315 0 129 0 186 0 315 0

Unknown if belt 

used 1,126 3 5,525 5 7,285 7 12,810 6 6,651 5 7,285 7 13,936 6

Total 38,127 100 100,578 100 99,472 100 200,050 100 138,705 100 99,472 100 238,177 100

Source: NHTSA, NCSA, LTCCS. Study Time Span: April 1, 2001 - December 31, 2003 

The LTCCS gathered much information about alcohol use, including the source and outcome of 

blood alcohol concentration tests. As shown in Table 24, 66 percent of large-truck drivers were 

not given a BAC test, while a police-reported BAC test result was collected for 10 percent of 

large-truck drivers, and a company-reported BAC test result was collected for 9 percent. Only 6 

percent of drivers of other vehicles had a police-reported BAC test result, with no companyreported BAC test results. Seventy-five percent of the drivers of other vehicles were not given a 

BAC test, which is 9 percentage points above the 66 percent of large-truck drivers who were not 

tested. 

In single-vehicle large-truck crashes, a BAC test was not given to 55 percent of large-truck 

drivers, while 27 percent of large-truck drivers had their source of a BAC test result coded as 

“other (specify).” Only 7 percent of large-truck drivers in multivehicle crashes had the source of 

their BAC test result coded as “other (specify),” with 71 percent coded as “no BAC test.” 
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 41

Table 24

Weighted Number of Drivers

By Source of BAC Test Result, Crash Type, and Involved Vehicle Type 

SingleVehicle 

Crash

Multivehicle Crash Total

Truck 

Driver

Truck 

Driver

Other 

Vehicle 

Driver

Total Truck 

Driver

Other 

Vehicle 

Driver

Total

Source of BAC 

Test Result 

# % # % # % # % # % # % # % 

No BAC test/Not 

applicable 20,906 55 72,688 71 75,303 75 147,991 73 93,594 66 75,303 75 168,897 70

Police reported 3,359 9 10,944 11 5,972 6 16,916 8 14,303 10 5,972 6 20,275 8

Company 

reported 3,358 9 9,279 9 0 0 9,279 5 12,637 9 0 0 12,637 5

No driver 

present 0 0 2,496 2 214 0 2,710 1 2,496 2 214 0 2,710 1

Other (specify) 10,185 27 7,341 7 17,759 18 25,100 12 17,526 12 17,759 18 35,285 15

Unknown 319 1 325 0 580 1 905 0 644 0 580 1 1,224 1

Total 38,127 100 103,074 100 99,828 100 202,902 100 141,200 100 99,828 100 241,028 100

Source: NHTSA, NCSA, LTCCS. Study Time Span: April 1, 2001 - December 31, 2003 

The BAC test status is recorded for all drivers in the LTCCS, as shown in Table 25. Around 90 

percent of large-truck drivers and drivers of other vehicles were listed as having “no alcohol 

use.” For less than 1 percent of large-truck drivers and for 4 percent of drivers of other vehicles, 

a BAC test was performed and the results were positive, showing that that driver had recently 

consumed alcohol. Drivers of other vehicles were more than six times as likely to have a 

positive BAC test (4.5%), compared to large-truck drivers (0.7%). The BAC test status did not 

vary significantly between single-vehicle crashes and multivehicle crashes, as shown in Table 

25. 
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 42

Table25

Weighted Number of Drivers

By Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) Test Status, 

Crash Type, and Involved Vehicle Type 

Single-Vehicle 

Crash Multivehicle Crash Total

Truck Truck Other 

Vehicle Total Truck Other Vehicle Total

BAC Test 

Status 

# % # % # % # % # % # % # % 

No alcohol use 34,654 91 93,971 91 90,063 90 184,034 91 128,625 91 90,063 90 218,687 91

BAC test 

performed, 

results positive 817 2 154 0 4,451 4 4,605 2 972 1 4,451 4 5,423 2

Field 

observation of 

NASS 

researcher 84 0 68 0 2,101 2 2,168 1 152 0 2,101 2 2,252 1

BAC test 

performed, 

results negative 146 0 354 0 331 0 685 0 500 0 331 0 832 0

None given 356 1 291 0 546 1 837 0 647 0 546 1 1,193 0

BAC test 

performed, 

results 

unknown 1,750 5 4,593 4 1,737 2 6,330 3 6,343 4 1,737 2 8,080 3

No driver 

present 0 0 2,496 2 214 0 2,710 1 2,496 2 214 0 2,710 1

Unknown 319 1 1,147 1 385 0 1,533 1 1,466 1 385 0 1,851 1

Total 38,127 100 103,074 100 99,828 100 202,902 100 141,200 100 99,828 100 241,028 100

Source: NHTSA, NCSA, LTCCS. Study Time Span: April 1, 2001 - December 31, 2003 

Some patterns in the data are more easily noticeable after removing the roughly 90 percent of 

drivers who were coded as having “no alcohol use” (see Table 26), and examining the remaining 

22,000 drivers in the LTCCS study who were not coded as having “no alcohol use." Eight 

percent of the remaining 13,000 large-truck drivers tested positive for alcohol use, compared to 

46 percent of the 10,000 drivers of other vehicles who tested positive for alcohol use. However, 

large-truck drivers (50%) were almost three times as likely as drivers of other vehicles (18%) to 

have had a BAC test performed whose results were “unknown.” Information on a drivers’ BAC 

was limited to a field observation by an NASS researcher for only 1 percent of large-truck 

drivers, compared to 22 percent of the drivers of other vehicles. 
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 43

In multivehicle crashes in Table 26, only 2 percent of large-truck drivers received a positive 

result from their alcohol test, versus 46 percent of drivers of other vehicles; comparatively, 50 

percent of large-truck drivers and 18 percent of other drivers received unknown results from the 

alcohol test that was performed. This BAC test status variable was coded as “no driver present” 

in 27 percent of the large trucks in multivehicle crashes, and in just 2 percent of other vehicles in 

multivehicle crashes. 

Table 26

Weighted Number of Drivers

By Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) Test Status, 

Crash Type, and Involved Vehicle Type 

EXCLUDING THE CATEGORY 'NO ALCOHOL USE'

SingleVehicle 

Crash

Multivehicle Crash Total

Truck Truck Other 

Vehicle Total Truck Other Vehicle Total

Drivers’ BAC 

Test Status 

# % # % # % # % # % # % # % 

BAC test 

performed, 

results positive 817 24 154 2 4,451 46 4,605 24 972 8 4,451 46 5,423 24

Field 

observation of 

NASS researcher 84 2 68 1 2,101 22 2,168 11 152 1 2,101 22 2,252 10

BAC test 

performed, 

results negative 146 4 354 4 331 3 685 4 500 4 331 3 832 4

None given 356 10 291 3 546 6 837 4 647 5 546 6 1,193 5

BAC test 

performed, 

results unknown 1,750 50 4,593 50 1,737 18 6,330 34 6,343 50 1,737 18 8,080 36

No driver 

present 0 0 2,496 27 214 2 2,710 14 2,496 20 214 2 2,710 12

Unknown 319 9 1,147 13 385 4 1,533 8 1,466 12 385 4 1,851 8

Total 3,473 100 9,102 100 9,765 100 18,868 100 12,576 100 9,765 100 22,341 100

Source: NHTSA, NCSA, LTCCS. Study Time Span: April 1, 2001 - December 31, 2003 

As shown in Table 27, 3 percent of large-truck drivers were driving their large truck for the first 

time (in the six months prior to the crash), and another 7 percent had driven their large truck 10 

times or less. Only 1 percent of drivers of other vehicles were driving their vehicle for the first 

time, with just another 3 percent having driven their vehicle 10 times or less. Almost two-thirds 

of all vehicle drivers had driven their vehicle more than 10 times in the last six months, with the 

driving patterns of the remaining drivers being coded as “unknown.” 
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 44

Table 27 

Weighted Number of Drivers 

By Whether the Driver Was Familiar with the Vehicle Driven at the Time of the Crash, 

Crash Type, and Involved Vehicle Type 

SingleVehicle 

Crash

Multivehicle Crash Total

Truck Truck Other 

Vehicle Total Truck Other Vehicle Total

Driver 

Familiarity with 

Vehicle 

# % # % # % # % # % # % # % 

First time 

driving this 

vehicle 976 3 3,434 3 1,237 1 4,671 2 4,410 3 1,237 1 5,647 2

Had driven this 

vehicle 2-5 times 

in the past six 

months 1,497 4 3,363 3 1,591 2 4,954 2 4,860 3 1,591 2 6,451 3

Had driven this 

vehicle 6-10 

times in the past 

six months 2,245 6 2,975 3 1,322 1 4,298 2 5,221 4 1,322 1 6,543 3

Had driven this 

vehicle more 

than 10 times in 

the past six 

months 24,314 64 74,166 72 61,622 62 135,788 67 98,480 70 61,622 62 160,102 66

No driver 

present 0 0 2,496 2 214 0 2,710 1 2,496 2 214 0 2,710 1

Unknown 9,094 24 16,639 16 33,842 34 50,481 25 25,734 18 33,842 34 59,576 25

Total 38,127 100 103,074 100 99,828 100 202,902 100 141,200 100 99,828 100 241,028 100

Source: NHTSA, NCSA, LTCCS. Study Time Span: April 1, 2001 - December 31, 2003 
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 45

VII. Appendix 

The following items are included in this appendix, in order to assist the reader in interpreting 

and/or producing standard errors and confidence intervals that correspond to the tables in this 

report: 

Tables 

The two tables shown later in the appendix have crash counts that are the same as shown in 

Table 1 of this report. These tables also show the standard errors that can be used with the crash 

counts of Table 1, in order to produce confidence intervals for each count. The 95-percent 

confidence intervals are shown in the SAS output displayed below. The SUDAAN output, 

shown following the SAS output, has the same counts and standard errors. 

Programming Code 

Programming code in two statistical programming languages (SAS and SUDAAN) were used to 

calculate the standard errors for the counts in this report. These two pieces of code were each 

used to individually calculate the output (both counts and standard errors) that are shown below. 

The SAS and SUDAAN standard errors, and therefore the 95-percent confidence intervals, are 

equivalent. The programming is shown in both languages in order to appeal to a wider audience. 

The SUDAAN code is appended to the end of the SAS code, in order to help the reader compare 

the programming languages. The SAS portion of the program was used by itself to produce the 

SAS chart of counts and standard errors, and confidence intervals. The SUDAAN code also can 

be used by itself, if the variables have been previously created in the program. 

Explanation of the Tables in the Appendix

A brief explanation of the tables, in order to help the reader interpret the findings, is placed here, 

immediately prior to the tables. Two examples of counts, standard errors, and confidence 

intervals are described below. 

It may be helpful to the reader to look back at Table 1 in this report. The counts shown in Table 

1 are the same counts that are seen in the SAS output, below, and the SUDAAN output, below. 

Example #1: For crashes where the only vehicle was a large truck, the weighted estimate of the 

crash count is 38,127. The standard error for this crash count is 9,407. This estimate and 

standard error were used to calculate the 95-percent confidence interval (17,631 to 58,623) 

shown below. Please note that since these data are not normally distributed, the 95-percent 

confidence interval is not calculated using the z-values of the standard normal curve. 

Example #2: For crashes where there is exactly one large truck and one other vehicle (i.e., a 

passenger car), the number of vehicles is two. Table 1 shows that the estimate for the count of 

crashes in this scenario is 51,025, and the standard error is shown below to be 10,389. The 95-

percent confidence interval for this count is shown below to be (28,389 to 73,660). 
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 46

SAS Output

SAS 9 ESTIMATES

The SURVEYFREQ Procedure 

Table of NUMBER_OF_VEHICLE by NUMBER_OF_TRUCK 

 

 Weighted Std Dev of 95% Confidence Limits 

 NUMBER_OF_VEHICLE NUMBER_OF_TRUCK Frequency Wgt Freq for Wgt Freq 

 

 1 1 38127 9407 17631 58623 

 2 0 0 0 0 

 3 or more 0 0 0 0 

 

 Total 38127 9407 17631 58623 

 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

 2 1 51025 10389 28389 73660 

 2 6888 2375 1714 12062 

 3 or more 0 0 0 0 

 

 Total 57913 11133 33656 82169 

 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

 3 or more 1 14501 1863 10441 18561 

 2 6964 2156 2266 11662 

 3 or more 2698 1464 0 5889 

 

 Total 24163 4502 14354 33972 

 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

 Total 1 103652 20020 60031 147273 

 2 13852 3987 5165 22539 

 3 or more 2698 1464 0 5889 

 

 Total 120202 23798 68352 172053 

 

 

 
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 47

SUDAAN Output

 

S U D A A N 

Number of observations read : 963 Weighted count : 120202 

 

The CROSSTAB Procedure 

Variance Estimation Method: Taylor Series (WR) 

SUDAAN OUTPUT 

by: NUMBER_OF_VEHICLE, NUMBER_OF_TRUCK. 

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 

| | | 

| NUMBER_OF_VEHI- | | NUMBER_OF_TRUCK 

| CLE | | Total | 1 | 2 | 3 or more | 

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 

| | | | | | | 

| Total | Weighted Size | 120202 | 103652 | 13852 | 2698 | 

| | SE Weighted | 23797.72 | 20020.47 | 3987.10 | 1464.30 | 

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 

| | | | | | | 

| 1 | Weighted Size | 38127 | 38127 | 0 | 0 | 

| | SE Weighted | 9407.07 | 9407.07 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 

| | | | | | | 

| 2 | Weighted Size | 57913 | 51025 | 6888 | 0 | 

| | SE Weighted | 11132.94 | 10388.96 | 2374.53 | 0.00 | 

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 

| | | | | | | 

| 3 or more | Weighted Size | 24163 | 14501 | 6964 | 2698 | 

| | SE Weighted | 4501.99 | 1863.40 | 2156.39 | 1464.30 | 

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 48

SAS Code and SUDAAN Code

The codes below were used to produce the SAS and SUDAAN output above. The SUDAAN 

code is inserted into the program at the end of the SAS code. 

Note that comments for the code are listed below, and surrounded by asterisks. 

SAS Code 

proc sort data=lt.crash; *** Sort crash file by caseid ***

 by caseid; 

run; 

proc sort data=lt.generalvehicle; *** Sort general vehicle file by caseid ***

 by caseid; 

run; 

data table1; *** merge crash and general vehicle files *** 

 merge lt.crash (in=a) 

 lt.generalvehicle (in=b); 

 by caseid; 

 if a and b; 

run; 

data table1; *** remove cases where the weight is zero ***

 set table1; 

 if ratweight gt 0; 

run;

DATA TABLE1_SE; 

 SET TABLE1; 

*** The NUMTRK variable was created just for this program. It was used to count the number of 

large trucks in the crash. The “3 or more trucks” category was created using a new variable 

NUMBER_OF_TRUCK *** 

 IF NUMTRK>=3 THEN NUMBER_OF_TRUCK=3; 

 ELSE NUMBER_OF_TRUCK=NUMTRK; 

*** The NUMVEH variable was also created just for this program. It was used to count the number 

of overall vehicles in the crash. The “3 or more vehicles” category was created using a new variable 

NUMBER_OF_VEHICLE *** 

 IF NUMVEH>=3 THEN NUMBER_OF_VEHICLE=3; 

 ELSE NUMBER_OF_VEHICLE=NUMVEH; 

 RUN; 

 
 NHTSA’s National Center for Statistics and Analysis 400 Seventh St., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20590 49

proc surveyfreq data=TABLE1_SE; 

 TITLE "SAS 9 ESTIMATES"; 

*** PSU is the primary sampling unit variable in the LTCCS database. PSUSTRATA is also in the 

LTCCS database.*** 

 strata PSUSTRATA / list; 

 cluster PSU; 

***RATWEIGHT is used for weighted data. Failure to use this variable will lead to only a raw count 

in the table *** 

 weight RATWEIGHT; 

 tables NUMBER_OF_VEHICLE*NUMBER_OF_TRUCK / CLWT NOPERCENT NOFREQ; 

 run; 

SUDAAN Code: This code was appended to the SAS code above.

PROC SORT 

 DATA=TABLE1_SE; 

 BY PSUSTRATA PSU; 

RUN; 

PROC CROSSTAB DATA=TABLE1_SE DESIGN=WR; 

 WEIGHT RATWEIGHT; 

 NEST PSUSTRATA PSU; 

 SUBGROUP NUMBER_OF_TRUCK NUMBER_OF_VEHICLE; 

 LEVELS 3 3; 

*** The 3 levels for the NUMBER_OF TRUCK variable and the NUMBER_OF_VEHICLE variable are 

for counts of 1, 2, and 3 or more *** 

 TABLE NUMBER_OF_VEHICLE*NUMBER_OF_TRUCK; 

*** WSUM is weighted sum, SEWGT is the standard error of the weighted sum *** 

 PRINT WSUM SEWGT/WSUMFMT=F10.0; 

 RTITLE "SUDAAN OUTPUT"; 

RUN; 
DOT HS 810 646

August 2006