FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WOWO) — Indiana ranks among the 10 most dangerous states in the country for truck drivers, with a rate of heavy-truck crashes 31% above the national average, according to a new study examining federal crash records and trucking employment data from across the United States. The s tudy, conducted by National Fuel Network, ranked Indiana ninth nationally, reporting an average of 76.4 crashes involving heavy trucks annually for every 1,000 heavy-truck drivers employed in the state. The national average is 58.1 crashes per 1,000 drivers. Neighboring Ohio and Michigan ranked lower on the list, with both states recording crash rates below Indiana’s. Michigan ranked 19th, with 62.2 crashes per 1,000 heavy-truck drivers, while Ohio ranked 29th, with 52.8 crashes per 1,000 drivers. The findings place Indiana among the states with the highest reported crash rates relative to their heavy-truck driving workforce, while Ohio and Michigan recorded rates closer to or below the national average. Wyoming ranked as the most dangerous state for truck drivers, with 136.1 crashes per 1,000 drivers annually. Utah was ranked the safest, with 33.8 crashes per 1,000 drivers. National Fuel Network analyzed federally recordable crashes involving trucks weighing more than 26,000 pounds between 2023 and 2025. Researchers compared average annual crash totals in each state with the number of heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers employed there, using federal employment data to calculate the crash rate per 1,000 drivers. The study counted crashes involving at least one qualifying truck that resulted in a death, an injury requiring transportation for medical treatment or a vehicle being towed away. Buses were excluded, and each crash was counted once regardless of how many trucks were involved. Indiana’s rate of 76.4 crashes per 1,000 drivers puts the state 31% above the national figure. Michigan’s rate of 62.2 is approximately 7% above the national average, while Ohio’s rate of 52.8 is about 9% below it. Illinois, another major Midwestern freight state, ranked 23rd with 58.2 crashes per 1,000 drivers, essentially in line with the national average. Pennsylvania ranked 24th at 58.0. The results highlight differences in reported heavy-truck crash rates across the Great Lakes and surrounding region, although the study’s figures measure crashes relative to the number of drivers employed in each state, rather than the individual risk faced by every truck driver on a particular roadway. Indiana recorded a higher rate than both neighboring states even as Michigan and Ohio also serve as important links in regional and interstate freight networks. The study did not establish that Indiana’s roads are inherently more dangerous than those in neighboring states, nor did the driver-based ranking account directly for every difference in truck traffic, road conditions or miles traveled. National Fuel Network also evaluated crashes relative to truck miles traveled, providing a second way to assess crash patterns. On that measure, Maryland recorded the highest rate among ranked states, at 66.9 crashes per 100 million truck miles. Utah had the lowest, at 11.9, compared with the national rate of 36.8. The study identified Georgia, Alabama, Maryland and South Carolina as states that ranked among the 10 most dangerous under both the driver-based and mileage-based measures. Indiana was among the top 10 states using the crash rate per 1,000 drivers, but it was not identified among those four states with consistently high rankings across both measures. For drivers traveling through Indiana, Ohio and Michigan, the findings offer a comparative look at reported crash rates but do not provide a specific risk estimate for individual highways or metropolitan areas. The study’s broader results show substantial differences nationwide. Wyoming recorded 2,563 heavy-truck crashes over the three-year period, an average of about 854 annually, compared with a workforce of 6,277 heavy-truck drivers. Its crash rate was more than twice the national average. Louisiana ranked second with 98.7 crashes per 1,000 drivers, followed by Georgia at 83.2, Alabama at 80.0 and Montana at 79.6. At the other end of the rankings, Utah recorded 2,428 heavy-truck crashes from 2023 through 2025 against an estimated workforce of 23,957 heavy-truck drivers. Massachusetts ranked next among the lowest-rate states at 36.2 crashes per 1,000 drivers, followed by Wisconsin at 37.2, Nebraska at 37.8 and California at 38.3. The research also examined seasonal crash patterns, particularly during winter, when snow, ice and other adverse weather can complicate commercial trucking. Wyoming had the highest winter crash rate, averaging 44.2 heavy-truck crashes per 1,000 drivers during December through February across the winters covered by the study. That was 3.1 times the national winter rate of 14.4 crashes per 1,000 drivers. The state’s daily heavy-truck crash rate increased 64% during winter compared with the rest of the year, the largest seasonal increase identified in the study. More than half of Wyoming’s winter truck crashes involved roads covered by snow, slush or ice, or occurred in snow or sleet. A spokesperson for National Fuel Network said Wyoming’s results demonstrate how roadway conditions and weather can affect commercial truck safety, particularly along Interstate 80, a major cross-country freight route. The spokesperson advised drivers to check road and weather reports before traveling, take highway closures seriously, maintain safe following distances and schedule regular rest stops. The spokesperson also highlighted the danger of strong crosswinds, particularly for empty or lightly loaded trailers. The study did not establish comparable winter increases specifically for Indiana, Ohio or Michigan in the information released with the rankings. National Fuel Network said its analysis used the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s Motor Carrier Management Information System crash file, Bureau of Labor Statistics employment estimates and Federal Highway Administration truck-mile data. The crash counts were based on a data snapshot taken October 4, 2026. Alaska, Hawaii, Rhode Island and Washington, D.C., were excluded from the state rankings because they had fewer than 300 qualifying crashes during the three-year study period. States flagged for possible underreporting of crashes could not be identified as the safest. The findings provide a national comparison of heavy-truck crash rates and put Indiana among the highest-ranking states by crashes relative to its trucking workforce. Ohio and Michigan, by comparison, recorded lower rates, with Ohio falling below the national average and Michigan remaining slightly above it. National Fuel Network, a division of Sunoco LP, conducted the research using federal crash, employment and highway data. Find the full study here. The post New Study Finds Indiana Truck Crash Rate Outpaces Ohio and Michigan appeared first on WOWO News/Talk 92.3 FM and 1190 AM. ...read more read less