Office of Operations Freight Management and Operations

Freight Facts and Figures 2011

Table 5-2. Injured Persons by Freight Transportation Mode: 1980-2010

The highway mode accounted for almost all of the injuries in freight transportation, but the number of injuries has dropped substantially since 2000.

Table in Excel format | Historical data

Blank cell. 1980 1990 2000 2009 2010
Total injured persons (passenger and freight) NA NA 3,259,673 NA U
Highway (passenger and freight) NA 3,230,666 3,188,750 2,217,000 U
Large truck occupants1 NA 41,822 30,832 17,000 U
Others injured in crashes involving large trucks NA 108,000 109,000 56,000 U
Large truck occupants1 (percent) NA 1.3 1.0 0.8 U
Others injured in crashes involving large trucks (percent) NA 3.3 3.4 2.5 U
Railroad (passenger and freight) 62,246 25,143 11,643 (R) 7,968 8,221
Highway-rail grade crossing2 3,550 2,407 1,219 (R) 741 845
Railroad2,3 58,696 22,736 10,424 (R) 7,227 7,376
Waterborne (passenger and freight) NA NA 665 722 509
Vessel-related4 180 175 151 186 135
Freight ship 8 10 5 8 17
Tank ship 9 13 3 4 0
Tug/towboat 27 19 18 39 0
Offshore supply NA 9 6 0 3
Fishing vessel 28 31 21 35 15
Mobile offshore drilling units NA 13 0 1 10
Platform NA 9 0 0 0
Freight barge NA 3 2 0 0
Tank barge NA 3 0 1 0
Miscellaneous5 98 12 96 98 90
Not related to vessel casualties4 NA NA 514 536 374
Pipeline 192 76 81 (R) 65 107
Hazardous liquid pipeline 15 7 4 4 4
Gas pipeline 177 69 77 (R) 61 103

Key: NA = not available; R = revised; U = unavailable at date of publication.

1Large trucks are defined as trucks over the 10,000 pound gross vehicle weight rating, including single-unit trucks and truck tractors.

2Includes Amtrak.

3Includes train accidents and other incidents. Most injuries involve workers on duty and are included under other incidents (4,183 in 2010).

4Vessel-related injuries include those involving damage to vessels, such as collisions or groundings. Injuries not related to vessel casualties include those from falls overboard or from accidents involving onboard equipment.

5Includes industrial vessel, oil recovery, passenger (inspected), passenger (uninspected), recreational, research vessel, unclassified, and unknown data.

Note:

Numbers may not add to totals because some injuries are counted in more than one mode.

Sources:

Total: U.S. Department of Transportation, Research and Innovative Technology Administration, Bureau of Transportation Statistics, National Transportation Statistics, available at www.bts.gov as of August 29, 2011.

Highway: 1980, 1990, and 2000: U.S. Department of Transportation, National Highway Transportation Safety Administration, National Center for Statistics and Analysis, Traffic Safety Facts, Large Trucks (annual issues). 2008-2009: U.S. Department of Transportation, National Highway Transportation Safety Administration, National Center for Statistics and Analysis, Traffic Safety Facts - Highlights (August 2010).

Railroad: U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Railroad Administration, Office of Safety Analysis, available at http://safetydata.fra.dot.gov/officeofsafety/default.asp as of August 29, 2011.

Waterborne: U.S. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Coast Guard, Data Administration Division, personal communication, September 6, 2011.

Pipeline: U.S. Department of Transportation, Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, Pipeline Safety Program, Pipeline Library, available at http://primis.phmsa.dot.gov/comm/PipelineLibrary.htm as of August 28, 2011.

 


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