Large trucks were involved in 307 of the 1,154 fatal crashes on Georgia interstates from 2019 through 2023. That is 26.6%, according to Flack Injury Law’s analysis of NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) data. On all other Georgia roads, large trucks were involved in 10.9% of fatal crashes (721 of 6,585) over the same years.
We built this dataset from NHTSA’s public FARS crash records. The large-truck counts cover all 159 Georgia counties, with full breakouts for Fulton, DeKalb, Cobb, Gwinnett, Clayton, Henry, Fayette, Barrow, Floyd and Richmond counties. County figures count crashes by where they happened, not where the people involved lived. Each number below names its years and source. The method and caveats are at the end.
Large Trucks Were in More Than a Quarter of Fatal Interstate Crashes
From 2019 to 2023, 29.9% of the state’s fatal large-truck crashes happened on an interstate (307 of 1,028). By contrast, 14.9% of all Georgia fatal crashes were on an interstate (1,154 of 7,739) (NHTSA FARS Final File, 2019 to 2023).
The share of fatal interstate crashes involving a large truck ranged from 22.3% in 2021 to 31.5% in 2020. Statewide, 1,143 people died in crashes involving a large truck over the five years. That is 13.7% of Georgia’s 8,365 traffic deaths (NHTSA FARS, 2019 to 2023).
Fulton County Had the Most Fatal Large-Truck Crashes in Georgia
Fulton County recorded 77 fatal crashes involving a large truck from 2019 through 2023, with 89 deaths. No other Georgia county had more. DeKalb was next with 42, then Gwinnett with 33 and Cobb with 31 (NHTSA FARS, 2019 to 2023). These are raw counts of crashes that happened in each county, not adjusted for population or traffic volume, so larger counties with more interstate miles will tend to have more.
The eight metro Atlanta counties in this study had 247 fatal large-truck crashes, 24.0% of the state total of 1,028. Henry County had 23, tied with Chatham County for fifth in Georgia. Clayton had 20 (NHTSA FARS, 2019 to 2023).
I-285 Led the Study Counties’ Interstates in Fatal Crashes
Among the interstate stretches in the 10 counties studied, I-285 had the most fatal crashes from 2019 through 2023: 161 crashes and 175 deaths on I-285 in Fulton, DeKalb, Cobb and Clayton, the four counties it runs through. DeKalb’s stretch alone had 77 fatal crashes and 85 deaths. I-75 had 145 fatal crashes and 172 deaths on its stretches in Fulton, Cobb, Clayton and Henry. I-75 crashes in counties outside the study are not counted here (NHTSA FARS, 2019 to 2023, by reported trafficway name).
I-285 also had more fatal large-truck crashes than any other interstate in the eight metro study counties. It accounted for 35 of the 103 fatal large-truck crashes on interstates in those counties (34.0%), and 38 people died in those 35 crashes. Within the same eight counties, I-75 had 27 fatal large-truck crashes, I-85 had 20 and I-20 had 16 (NHTSA FARS, 2019 to 2023).
In Gwinnett and Henry, Large Trucks Were in About 4 in 10 Fatal Interstate Crashes
In Gwinnett County, 14 of 35 fatal interstate crashes involved a large truck (40.0%). Henry County was close behind at 12 of 31 (38.7%). Cobb was at 23.3% (14 of 60). Fulton was at 13.2% (27 of 204) (NHTSA FARS, 2019 to 2023).
More than half of Henry’s fatal large-truck crashes were on I-75: 12 of 23 (52.2%). Large trucks were involved in 16.8% of Henry’s 137 fatal crashes, the second-highest share among the 10 counties studied, after Barrow (NHTSA FARS, 2019 to 2023).
DeKalb County Traffic Deaths Nearly Doubled From 2019 to 2023
DeKalb County traffic deaths rose from 79 in 2019 to 151 in 2023, an increase of 91.1%. In 2023, DeKalb passed Fulton (112 deaths) for the first time in the five years studied. DeKalb’s fatal large-truck crashes rose from 4 in 2019 to 11 in 2023 (NHTSA FARS Final File, 2019 to 2023).
Preliminary 2024 data show DeKalb at 106 deaths and Fulton at 95 (NHTSA FARS 2024 Annual Report File, subject to change).
Fayette, Barrow and Floyd: Most Fatal Crashes Were on State and U.S. Routes
In all three counties, most fatal crashes from 2019 through 2023 were on a state or U.S. route: 27 of 50 in Fayette, 45 of 67 in Barrow and 62 of 91 in Floyd (NHTSA FARS, 2019 to 2023, by the first reported trafficway name).
Fayette County had 50 fatal crashes and 53 deaths from 2019 through 2023, and none of those crashes were on an interstate. Eleven of them were on SR-92 or at an intersection with it (12 deaths), and 7 were on or at SR-54. Large trucks were involved in 8 of Fayette’s 50 fatal crashes (16.0%) (NHTSA FARS, 2019 to 2023; road counts include crashes at intersections with the route).
Barrow County had 67 fatal crashes and 75 deaths. Thirteen of them, with 16 deaths, were on SR-316 (University Parkway) or at an intersection with it. Large trucks were involved in 13 of Barrow’s fatal crashes. At 19.4%, that was the highest share among the 10 counties studied (NHTSA FARS, 2019 to 2023).
Floyd County had 91 fatal crashes, 95 deaths and 12 fatal large-truck crashes. Richmond County had 171 fatal crashes and 186 deaths. In Richmond, 19 of 24 fatal interstate crashes were on I-520, the Bobby Jones Expressway (NHTSA FARS, 2019 to 2023).
County Totals, 2019 to 2023
| County | Fatal crashes | Deaths | Fatal crashes involving a large truck | Deaths in those crashes | Fatal crashes on interstates | Fatal large-truck crashes on interstates |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fulton | 652 | 714 | 77 | 89 | 204 | 27 |
| DeKalb | 564 | 592 | 42 | 46 | 158 | 26 |
| Cobb | 323 | 339 | 31 | 36 | 60 | 14 |
| Gwinnett | 278 | 302 | 33 | 37 | 35 | 14 |
| Clayton | 241 | 261 | 20 | 20 | 64 | 9 |
| Henry | 137 | 155 | 23 | 27 | 31 | 12 |
| Fayette | 50 | 53 | 8 | 9 | 0 | 0 |
| Barrow | 67 | 75 | 13 | 16 | 2 | 1 |
| Floyd | 91 | 95 | 12 | 13 | 0 | 0 |
| Richmond | 171 | 186 | 13 | 15 | 24 | 2 |
| Georgia | 7,739 | 8,365 | 1,028 | 1,143 | 1,154 | 307 |
Source: Flack Injury Law analysis of NHTSA FARS Final File data, 2019 to 2023. The county is where the crash happened.
How We Did This
We pulled fatal crash records for the 10 counties, plus Georgia’s statewide totals, from NHTSA’s FARS Crash API for 2019 to 2023. We then took the large-truck and interstate details from NHTSA’s FARS data layers on the U.S. Department of Transportation’s geospatial server.
A “large truck” follows NHTSA’s definition: “any medium or heavy truck, excluding buses and motor homes, with a gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) greater than 10,000 lb.” (NHTSA, Large Trucks: 2023 Data, DOT HS 813 717). We used NHTSA’s own crash-level flag in FARS for crashes involving a large truck (the auxiliary variable A_LT). An “interstate crash” is one where FARS codes the route as an interstate. Named-road counts use the trafficway name in the police report.
Our statewide totals match NHTSA’s published Georgia numbers for every year. One example is 1,610 deaths in 2023 (DOT HS 813 791). Our large-truck death counts also match the Georgia figures in NHTSA’s State Traffic Safety Information report for every year: 204, 235, 246, 270 and 188 for 2019 through 2023. That report shows 1,615 total deaths for 2023 because it used preliminary 2023 data that NHTSA later revised to 1,610. NHTSA’s yearly Large Trucks fact sheets, which also use preliminary data, list 234 large-truck crash deaths for Georgia in 2020 and 244 in 2021; the final figures are 235 and 246.
Limits: FARS covers fatal crashes only. Counts are not adjusted for population or traffic volume. A crash “involving” a truck does not mean the truck driver was at fault.
Sources
- NHTSA, Fatality Analysis Reporting System Crash API: https://crashviewer.nhtsa.dot.gov/crashviewer/CrashAPI
- NHTSA FARS vehicle data layers, U.S. DOT geospatial server: https://geo.dot.gov/server/rest/services/NHTSA/FQVeh/MapServer
- NHTSA, Overview of Motor Vehicle Traffic Crashes in 2024, DOT HS 813 791 (April 2026): https://crashstats.nhtsa.dot.gov/Api/Public/ViewPublication/813791
- NHTSA, Large Trucks: 2023 Data, DOT HS 813 717 (April 2025): https://crashstats.nhtsa.dot.gov/Api/Public/ViewPublication/813717
- NHTSA, Traffic Safety Facts 2024 Data: Large Trucks, DOT HS 813 816 (June 2026): https://crashstats.nhtsa.dot.gov/Api/Public/ViewPublication/813816
- NHTSA State Traffic Safety Information report for Georgia, published by the Georgia Governor’s Office of Highway Safety: https://www.gahighwaysafety.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Pages-from-Georgia-_STSI_Report.pdf
- NHTSA, FARS Analytical User’s Manual, 1975-2023, DOT HS 813 706: https://crashstats.nhtsa.dot.gov/Api/Public/ViewPublication/813706
Frequently Asked Questions
Which Georgia County Had the Most Fatal Large-Truck Crashes From 2019 to 2023?
Fulton County, with 77 fatal crashes involving a large truck from 2019 through 2023 and 89 deaths. DeKalb was second with 42 (NHTSA FARS, 2019 to 2023).
How Many People Died in Georgia Large-Truck Crashes in 2023?
FARS final data show 188 deaths in Georgia crashes involving a large truck in 2023. Preliminary 2024 data show 197 (NHTSA FARS 2023 Final File; NHTSA DOT HS 813 816 for 2024).
Does This Data Include Truck Crashes Where No One Died?
No. FARS includes only crashes in which someone died within 30 days. Injury-only crashes are not counted.
Does “Involving a Large Truck” Mean the Truck Caused the Crash?
No. It means at least one large truck was part of the crash. FARS does not decide fault. Fault depends on the facts of each crash.
For statewide trends and what drives truck crashes, see our Georgia truck accident statistics guide.
If you were hurt in a crash with a tractor-trailer or other large truck in Georgia, call Flack Injury Law at (678) 653-0309 or request a free case review.
This article is general information about Georgia law, not legal advice for any specific situation. Laws change and outcomes depend on facts particular to each case. Reading this page or contacting Flack Injury Law through this website does not create an attorney-client relationship. Do not send confidential information until an attorney-client relationship has been established.