National Transportation Safety Board

Multivehicle Collision on Interstate 90 Hampshire-marengo Toll Plaza, New Hampshire, Illinois, October 1, 2003 National Transportation Safety Board

Publisher Marketing: On October 1, 2003, a multivehicle accident occurred on the approach to an Interstate 90 toll plaza near Hampshire, Illinois. About 2:57 p.m., a 1995 Freightliner tractor-trailer chassis and cargo container combination unit was traveling eastbound on the interstate, approaching the Hampshire- Marengo toll plaza at milepost 41.6, when it struck the rear of a 1999 Goshen GC2 25-passenger specialty bus. As both vehicles moved forward, the specialty bus struck the rear of a 2000 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 pickup truck, which was pushed into the rear of a 1998 Ford conventional tractor-box trailer. As its cargo container and chassis began to overturn, the Freightliner also struck the upper portion of the pickup truck's in-bed camper and the rear left side of the Ford trailer. The Freightliner and the specialty bus continued forward and came to rest in the median. The pickup truck was then struck by another eastbound vehicle, a 2000 Kenworth tractor with Polar tank trailer. Eight specialty bus passengers were fatally injured, and 12 passengers sustained minor-to-serious injuries. The bus driver, the pickup truck driver, and the Freightliner driver received minor injuries. The Ford driver and codriver and the Kenworth driver were not injured.