ST. LOUIS (AP) — The number of people dying in accidents involving tractor-trailers is on the rise in Missouri.

Missouri State Highway Patrol Capt. Tim Hull says 120 people were killed in accidents involving big rigs in 2011, up from 105 in 2010.

Hull says the increase in deaths occurred even as the number of accidents decreased slightly.

Patrol statistics show that most accidents involving tractor-trailers are not the fault of the truck driver but the driver of the passenger vehicle.