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Updated July 2026 | Reviewed by Greg Baumgartner, Texas truck accident lawyer
Large trucks keep Texas businesses and families supplied, but crashes involving an 18-wheeler or other commercial vehicle can change lives in seconds. The numbers below show how often these crashes happen, who is most at risk, and why safe trucking practices matter. The main statewide figures come from the Texas Department of Transportation’s final 2024 commercial motor vehicle report. We also explain newer national trends and identify where preliminary data should not be treated as final.
| 2024 Texas CMV measure | Verified total | What it means |
| Total CMV crashes | 39,393 | About 108 crashes per day |
| Fatal crashes | 546 | More than 10 fatal crashes per week |
| People killed | 608 | More than one death for each fatal crash |
| Serious-injury crashes | 1,261 | Crashes involving suspected serious injuries |
| People seriously injured | 1,601 | Life-changing harm to drivers, passengers, and others |
| Harris County CMV crashes | 6,313 | About 16% of the statewide total |
Source: TxDOT, Commercial Motor Vehicle Involved Crashes and Injuries by County, 2024.
| A note about the numbers TxDOT, FMCSA, NHTSA, and the National Safety Council do not always count the same vehicles or use the same reporting systems. A TxDOT “commercial motor vehicle” total may differ from a national “large truck” total. We identify the source and year so readers are not misled by numbers that measure different things. |
Truck crashes are part of a much larger roadway safety problem. According to TxDOT’s Texas Motor Vehicle Traffic Crash Facts for 2024, 4,150 people died in motor vehicle crashes across the state. Texas also recorded 14,905 serious-injury crashes and 18,218 people with serious injuries.
The pace of these crashes is difficult to ignore. In 2024, one person was killed on a Texas road about every two hours and seven minutes. One person was injured about every two minutes and five seconds, and a reportable crash occurred about every 57 seconds.
Those figures include every type of motor vehicle crash, not just truck wrecks. Still, they show the traffic conditions in which commercial drivers must operate. Long distances, crowded urban freeways, construction zones, energy traffic, and cross-border freight all place heavy demands on Texas roads.
A commercial motor vehicle, or CMV, is not limited to an 18-wheeler. Depending on the reporting system, the term can include tractor-trailers, delivery trucks, buses, dump trucks, tankers, tow trucks, and other vehicles used for business. National “large truck” data commonly include trucks with a gross vehicle weight rating above 10,000 pounds.
That distinction matters. Readers should not compare a Texas CMV total with a national large-truck total unless the definitions are clear. For the current federal reporting picture, the FMCSA Analysis and Information crash statistics portal warns that 2025 crash data remain provisional and can change as reports are added or corrected.
Harris County recorded 6,313 commercial motor vehicle crashes in 2024. That was about 16% of the 39,393 CMV crashes reported statewide. The county also had 41 fatal CMV crashes, 41 deaths, 98 serious-injury crashes, and 112 people with suspected serious injuries.
The high total is not surprising. Houston is a major freight and distribution center. Trucks move through the region to serve the Port of Houston, refineries, warehouses, construction sites, retail centers, and interstate shipping routes. Passenger vehicles and heavy trucks must share some of the busiest roads in Texas.
Two important freight routes are Interstate 45 and Interstate 10. Heavy traffic, sudden slowdowns, construction, lane changes, and limited stopping distance can make a small driving mistake far more dangerous when a fully loaded truck is involved.
The people outside the large truck face the greatest danger. The National Safety Council’s 2024 large-truck analysis found that 5,340 people died nationwide in large-truck crashes. About 70% were occupants of other vehicles, 17% were truck occupants, and 13% were pedestrians, bicyclists, or other non-occupants.
The same pattern appears in injury data. Most people hurt in large-truck crashes are occupants of other vehicles. Size and weight are major reasons. A passenger vehicle cannot absorb the same force as a tractor-trailer, especially in a high-speed rear-end, head-on, underride, or rollover crash.
These collisions can cause serious truck accident injuries such as traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord damage, fractures, internal injuries, burns, amputations, and permanent disability.
National 2024 data show that more than half of fatal large-truck crashes occurred on rural roads, while about one-quarter happened on interstate highways. Most occurred during daylight, and a smaller but important share happened in construction zones.
Rural crashes can be especially deadly because vehicles often travel at higher speeds and emergency help may be farther away. Urban crashes may occur at lower average speeds, but they often involve congestion, frequent lane changes, intersections, pedestrians, and sudden stops.
Statistics describe patterns, but they do not prove what caused a specific wreck. A careful investigation must consider the roadway, weather, traffic, vehicle condition, driver conduct, company practices, and available electronic data.
Truck crashes rarely have one simple cause. A driver may make the final mistake, but company decisions made days or months earlier can help create the danger. Common issues include the following:
• Driver fatigue and excessive hours: A tired driver may react slowly, miss changing traffic, drift from a lane, or fall asleep.
• Speeding or failure to control speed: A heavy truck needs more time and distance to slow down, especially in traffic, rain, or a work zone.
• Distracted driving: Phones, dispatch systems, navigation tools, food, and outside events can take a driver’s attention from the road.
• Unsafe lane changes and blind spots: Large trucks have wide blind areas, and an unsafe move can force a smaller vehicle off the road or under a trailer.
• Poor maintenance: Worn brakes, damaged tires, steering problems, broken lights, and other defects can turn a preventable problem into a major crash.
• Improper cargo loading: Shifting, overloaded, or unsecured cargo can cause a rollover, jackknife, lost load, or braking problem.
• Unqualified or poorly trained drivers: Motor carriers must use reasonable care when hiring, training, and supervising commercial drivers.
Federal and state safety rules address driver qualifications, hours of service, inspections, maintenance, cargo securement, and other risks. Our guide to Texas trucking regulations explains how these rules are intended to prevent serious crashes.
Statewide statistics cannot establish fault in an individual case. They can, however, show why truck companies are expected to maintain strong safety systems. When a serious crash occurs, the investigation may uncover evidence that is not included in the police report.
Important evidence may include electronic logging data, engine control or event data, dash-camera video, inspection records, repair history, drug and alcohol testing records, dispatch messages, driver qualification files, cargo documents, and the carrier’s safety policies.
A trucking company may be responsible for its driver’s conduct and may also be directly liable for its own unsafe practices. Learn more about proving trucking company negligence and who may be responsible for a truck accident.
Evidence can disappear or be overwritten. That is why prompt preservation demands and a focused investigation are important after a catastrophic truck crash.
• Stay where the truck driver can see your vehicle. If you cannot see the truck’s mirrors, the driver may not be able to see you.
• Leave extra following distance. A truck can block your view of stopped traffic, debris, or road hazards ahead.
• Do not cut closely in front of a truck. The driver may not have enough room to stop.
• Pass on the left when it is safe, and do not remain beside a truck longer than necessary.
• Expect wide turns. Never squeeze between a turning truck and a curb.
• Give trucks more room in rain, high winds, work zones, and heavy traffic.
• Move away from a truck that is drifting, speeding, losing cargo, or showing signs of a tire or mechanical problem.
TxDOT reported 39,393 crashes involving commercial motor vehicles in Texas during 2024. That equals about 108 CMV crashes per day.
TxDOT reported 608 deaths in 546 fatal CMV crashes in 2024. These totals use Texas reporting definitions and should not be treated as identical to national large-truck data.
Harris County recorded 6,313 CMV crashes in 2024, about 16% of the Texas total. The county also had 41 fatal CMV crashes and 112 suspected serious injuries.
The agencies may use different vehicle definitions, databases, reporting deadlines, and measures. One source may count crashes, another may count trucks involved, and another may count deaths.
Yes. National 2024 data show that about 70% of people killed in large-truck crashes were occupants of other vehicles. Truck occupants accounted for a much smaller share.
Common factors include speed, distraction, fatigue, unsafe lane changes, poor maintenance, improper loading, inadequate training, and failure to react to changing traffic.
No. Statistics show broad patterns, but negligence must be proven with evidence from the specific crash, driver, truck, motor carrier, roadway, and surrounding conditions.
Legal deadlines may allow more time, but critical evidence can be lost quickly. Electronic data may be overwritten, vehicles may be repaired, and witnesses’ memories can fade.
Behind every crash statistic is a person or family dealing with pain, medical care, lost income, or grief. We have represented injured people and families in serious commercial vehicle cases for more than 40 years. Our approach is personal, selective, and focused on preserving the evidence needed to hold unsafe drivers and trucking companies accountable.
If you were seriously injured or lost a loved one, review our information about fatal truck accident claims or contact our firm for a free consultation. There is no attorney fee unless we recover compensation for you.
| Data methodology The primary Texas figures in this article come from TxDOT’s final 2024 CMV report, processed as of April 9, 2025. National large-truck figures come from the National Safety Council’s analysis of NHTSA data. The TxDOT 2025 crash-statistics archive and FMCSA provisional data should be reviewed during the next annual update. |
• TxDOT: 2024 Commercial Motor Vehicle Crashes and Injuries by County
• TxDOT: Texas Motor Vehicle Traffic Crash Facts, 2024
• TxDOT: 2025 Crash Statistics Archive
• FMCSA: Analysis and Information Crash Statistics
• FMCSA: Large Truck and Bus Crash Facts