“Fatalities involving large trucks on Kansas and Missouri roads have spiked dramatically over the last decade, according to recently released federal data, underscoring why area lawmakers must fight renewed efforts in Washington, D.C., and our state capitols to allow even bigger semitrucks on the nation’s highways. New findings from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration show that annual fatalities in Missouri resulting from crashes with large trucks rose by 58.7% between 2012 and 2022, from 92 fatalities to 146. In all, 1,270 people died in Missouri during that period as a result of collisions involving large trucks. The fatality data for Kansas also tells a tragic story. The number of deaths from crashes with large trucks rose by 28.1% between 2012 and 2022, with 822 fatalities during that period. NHTSA data compiled for 2022 is the most recent. The national trend is no less tragic, with annual fatalities rising some 50.5% between 2012 and 2022 — 3,944 deaths in 2012 and 5,936 in 2022. A total of 52,252 people across the nation died in collisions with big trucks during that time.”