Deadly week on I-70: Tractor-trailer crashes kill three in Mid-Missouri
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
The death toll from accidents involving tractor-trailers rose after three people were killed this week on Interstate 70 in Mid-Missouri.
Officials say two women were killed on Monday in a seven-vehicle accident after a tractor-trailer in the westbound passing lane on Interstate 70 near the Stadium Boulevard exit hit a vehicle in the driving lane, went over the median, and hit a U-Haul truck head-on in the eastbound lanes.
Then on Wednesday morning, an eastern Missouri man was killed when his utility truck lost control on Interstate 70 in Callaway County. The accident occurred after a Ford-250 hit a trailer being pulled by a semi-truck and skid off the left side of the road, before hitting a median cable and landing on its top.
According to data from the Missouri Highway Patrol, 32 people were killed while another 490 were injured from August through December in 2023 during incidents involving tractor-trailers.
“Whether it's involving a passenger vehicle or a larger severe tractor-trailer, generally the majority of the crashes that we investigate usually are caused by a handful of things. Speeding would be one of the leading contributing factors. Impaired driving, whether on alcohol or drugs, certainly in distracted driving and especially with cell phones, is leading to a lot of the crashes as well,” MSHP spokesman Kyle Green said. “Following too closely and just overall careless, imprudent driving, I can't say that there's one particular thing that stands out in crashes involving tractor-trailers. In general, it's usually those four or five things that are involved in almost all the crashes we investigate.”
The Missouri Department of Transportation is hoping the Improve I-70 Project will enhance road safety. According to MoDOT engineer Eric Kopinski, the Improve I-70 project from Columbia to Kingdom City will include a new permanent concert median barrier wall. Kopinski told ABC 17 in an email that the wall would be 42 inches high. However, MoDOT has yet to complete the design of the rest of the I-70 areas outside of the initial 20-mile project.
Green said it is still too early to tell if the third lane being added as part of the project will improve safety.
“When we have heavy traffic, obviously that will help with the flow of traffic. It can lead to more aggressive driving as people stagger, they can get out in the passing lane and go especially fast compared to what they can do when it's two lanes in each direction," Green said. "But, overall it's people's driving attitude and how they're driving is what we want to change. I don't know that expanding I-70 is going to change that attitude, nd that's why we want to reach out and remind people... whether you're on a two-lane highway, four-lane interstate... or something larger drive with care, slow down, pay attention to the people that are around you and everybody can get home safely,” Green explained.
The Federal Motor Carrier Association advises drivers to leave at least one second for every 10 feet between a car and a tractor-trailer, if they are driving 40 mph or slower. For speeds more than 40 mph, the FMCSA says you should leave an additional second.
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