Four crashes involving commercial-related vehicles have occurred this week along Interstate 76 in Mahoning County, three of which occurred on Thursday.

21 News decided to investigate the number of commercial-related vehicle crashes, which include semis and delivery vehicles, along Interstate 76 in Mahoning County compared to commercial crashes in neighboring Summit and Portage counties along the same road from 2021 through Monday, when the Ohio State Highway Patrol Crash Portal was last updated.

While Summit County had more overall crashes (2,265) on I-76 than Mahoning County (1,190) between 2021 and Monday, the number of commercial-related accidents is nearly 18 percent higher in Mahoning County than in Summit, which includes the area where I-76 runs through the city of Akron.

The number of commercial-related crashes is 79 percent higher in the same time frame in Mahoning County than in comparison to nearby Portage County, which sits between Summit and Mahoning counties.

So far this year (through Monday), there have been 60 crashes on I-76 in Mahoning County and 18 injuries or possible injuries. 

Since 2021, in Mahoning County, there have been 410 commercial-related crashes, a total of 1,190 crashes, seven fatalities, 10 serious injuries, and 151 injuries or probable injuries along this stretch of road.

In the same time frame, neighboring Portage County has reported 229 commercial-related crashes on I-76, with 1,078 total crashes, five fatalities, and 133 injuries. Summit County has had 348 commercial-related crashes, but nearly double the number of total crashes compared to Mahoning County, with 2,265. Summit has had 13 fatalities on I-76 from 2021 through Monday, 44 serious injuries and 407 injuries.

While Mahoning County has more miles of I-76 running through it than Portage and Summit, but what isn't clear why accidents involving commercial-related vehicles are so much higher in the Valley than in the more congested stretch through Akron or through Portage County.

"I-76 at Bailey Road has an average daily traffic county of 40,000 vehicles.", said Ray Marsch, Public Information Officer for ODOT District 4. That figure is 20 percent higher than traffic numbers at the Mahoning-Portage County line.

That exit, is also inside of the Distracted Driving Corridor that ODOT was instrumental in launching in 2018, and at the time was the first of its kind in the Buckeye State.

"We always encourage motorists to put down distractions, you know April is Distracted Driving Awareness month so it's just vital that when you're behind the wheel, you put down the distractions" Marsch explained, adding that he's not speculating on the nature of these recent crashes.

21 News reached reached to the Mahoning and Portage OSP posts, as well as the main office headquartered in Columbus, however no one was available to speak on the issue.

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