DENVER — Colorado State Patrol (CSP) has seen a downward trend in the number of fatal crashes involving commercial vehicles since 2021 after a five-year high that year.
Based on CSP data, 43 commercial motor vehicles (CMV) have been involved in a fatal crash so far in 2023, as of Oct. 11. In all of 2022, there were 64 fatal crashes involving a CMV, which was a 18.9% decrease from 2021, when there were 79.
The Colorado roadway with the highest number of these types of crashes is Interstate 70, specifically the mountain corridor. The main factor in crashes along I-70 in the mountains for CMVs are lane violations and speed, CSP reported.
“The severity of CMV-involved crashes to the occupants and the roadways is extreme,” said Col. Matthew C. Packard, chief of CSP. “Historically, CMV crashes begin to trend upward in October and peak in January for Colorado. Our troopers and Port of Entry officers have already begun implementing various enforcement crash-reduction strategies to keep crashes down and help save lives.”
This fall and winter, CSP will again focus its enforcement on the I-70 corridor, especially the area around Floyd Hill, Eisenhower-Johnson Memorial Tunnel, Vail Pass and Glenwood Canyon. Floyd Hill is currently undergoing construction and there are often crews — and therefore reduced speeds — in the area.
Last winter, CSP completed high-visibility CMV enforcement efforts in and around Glenwood Canyon. That will continue into the winter of 2023-2024.
