Doolittle, MO (September 4, 2026) – Two MoDOT employees were injured on Wednesday, September 2, after a semi-truck rear-ended a MoDOT truck on westbound I-44 near mile marker 179.
The crash occurred near Doolittle and shut down the westbound lanes for several hours. Multiple ambulances were called, and both injured employees were taken to a hospital, according to MoDOT spokeswoman Marcia Johnson.
The MoDOT truck was equipped with a Truck-Mounted Attenuator designed to absorb energy when another vehicle strikes the rear of a highway work truck. The device sustained significant damage in the collision.
The semi-truck driver declined treatment. Traffic was redirected through the ramps while crews cleared the roadway and removed spilled oil.
The circumstances surrounding the collision are still under review. We hope the two injured MoDOT employees make a full recovery.
How Do Truck-Mounted Attenuators Protect Highway Workers?
Truck-Mounted Attenuators, or TMAs, are safety devices attached to certain highway work vehicles. They are designed to absorb and dissipate energy when another vehicle strikes the rear of the work vehicle.
TMAs can reduce the force transferred to the truck and its occupants. They are especially common in work zones and on roads where maintenance vehicles operate near moving traffic.
Rear-end crashes involving highway work trucks can still cause serious harm despite these protective devices. Driver attention, following distance, speed, visibility, and roadway conditions can affect collision severity. Highway workers also rely on warning signs, lighting, markings, and other traffic-control measures to alert approaching drivers to vehicles operating on or beside travel lanes.
