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By Sean McNally, Senior Reporter

This story appears in the Feb. 16 print edition of Transport Topics.

Two key safety indicators improved to their best-ever levels during 2007, according to data just released by the Department of Transportation and analyzed by Transport Topics.

Both the truck-related fatality rate and the truck-related fatal crash rate were the best since DOT began tracking the data in 1975; it was the third straight decline for the fatality rate and the second straight decline for the crash rate.

Terry Shelton, associate administrator for research and information technology with DOT’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, said the agency was “pleased the numbers are going down,” but added there is still “a long way to go.”

The truck fatality rate, which determines the frequency of fatalities on U.S. highways, fell to 2.12 per 100 million miles driven by large vehicles, a 5.8% drop from the previous low of 2.25 per 100 million miles set in 2006.

The fatal crash rate, which calculates the incidence of truck crashes that result in a fatality, fell to 1.85 per 100 million truck miles driven, a decline of 4.1% from 2006, which had also been the all-time low.

TT calculates the fatality and fatal crash rates by dividing the number of fatalities and fatal crashes tabulated by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration by the estimated number of miles traveled by large trucks, as determined by the Federal Highway Administration.

In 2007, the number of fatalities fell to 4,808 from 5,027 the previous�� year, while the total number of fatal crashes dropped to 4,190 from 4,321 in 2006 (8-18, p. 1).

According to FHWA data, the miles driven by large trucks rose to 226.96 billion in 2007, an increase from a revised estimate for 2006 of 223.5 billion.

Initially, DOT had estimated 2006 truck miles to be 223.3 billion. The change in the 2006 figure for miles traveled changed the 2006 fatality rate to 2.25; it was originally calculated to be 2.24.

The fatal crash rate remained at 1.93 per 100 million miles.

Government and industry officials cited several factors for the decline, including new regulations, technological improvements and stricter enforcement.

“It is always a combination,” FMCSA’s Shelton said when asked to identify the causes of the im-provement. Specifically, she cited the agency’s work with new fleets and its new safety review program, CSA 2010.

Shelton said future reductions would be driven by improvements in data, which will aid enforcement agencies in targeting potentially unsafe carriers, and the increased use of new technologies, such as lane-departure warning systems and forward-collision warnings.

“We’re seeing more and more deployment” of the new safety systems, she said. “The benefits from these technologies are going to be significant in the coming years.”

Dave Osiecki, vice president of safety, security and operations for American Trucking Associations, said the reductions were “great news.”

“This achievement demonstrates the industry’s continuing commitment to safety and the effectiveness of the current government-industry partnership,” he said.

Osiecki also cited FMCSA’s new hours-of-service rules as a potential cause of the gains.

“Since the new hours-of-service regulations took effect in 2005, the fatal crash rate has come down 10%,” he said.

Steve Keppler, director of policy and programs for the Commercial Vehicle Safety Alliance, credited the declines to more enforcement activity.

“Since 2005, we’ve have a pretty significant bump in roadside inspections, in safety audits, in compliance reviews and, as a result, in out-of-service orders,” he said. “And that’s having some impact on the numbers.”