Safety -- by the numbers -- for large trucks

Some safety facts about large trucks, according to 1997 data, the most recent available from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration:One of eight traffic fatalities resulted from a collision involving a large truck.

444,000 large trucks were involved in traffic crashes in America.

5,355 people died and 133,000 others were injured in those crashes.

Of those killed in crashes, 13 percent were in the trucks; 78 percent were in other vehicles; the rest were not in any vehicle.