The Colorado State Patrol is seeing a decrease in distracted driving crashes involving commercial motor vehicles.
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In 2025, there were 316 distracted driving crashes involving CMVs, down 6.5% from the year before.
“It’s a positive that we're seeing the reduction,” Colorado Motor Carriers Association president Greg Fulton said.
Commercial trucks are a constant presence on Colorado’s roads, which comes with big responsibility and a need for drivers to keep their attention on the road.
“These are professional drivers. Their job is being paid to drive, and hopefully they've been trained to drive safely,” McDivitt Law Firm CEO & managing attorney David McDivitt said.
When it comes to crashes, attorney David McDivitt, whose firm specializes in injury cases, said crash causes vary.
“It's the cell phone, food, fatigue, or they've been on the road too long,” McDivitt said.
According to CSP, “the decrease correlates with the hands-free law taking effect” at the beginning of 2025.
CSP added that enforcement, education, and changes in driver behavior could also be factors.
Greg Fulton with the Colorado Motor Carriers Association said trucking companies are also making distracted driving awareness part of their safety culture.
“They put it into their safety programs. They put it into their training manuals,” Fulton said.
Some companies are utilizing technology to flag possible distraction or fatigue.
“We're seeing more and more companies putting the in-cab type cameras. They get activated when certain things are happening. They're perceiving weaving or something like that,” Fulton said.
When a crash does happen, McDivitt said responsibility can extend beyond the truck driver.
“Trucking-related cases almost always involve the company as well,” McDivitt said.
That’s because trucking companies are responsible for making sure their drivers are trained and prepared.
“Those large trucking companies, these operators, are responsible for making sure that the driver is prepared to be on the road that day driving these 80,000-pound vehicles,” McDivitt said.
McDivitt said the problem isn’t limited to commercial drivers.
“You look over and see somebody on their phone,” McDivitt said.
Distracted truck drivers can face more than $2,700 in fines. Repeat offenses can lead to a driver being disqualified or put out of service for up to 120 days. Employers can face up to $11,000 in fines.
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