US Road Fatalities Down 25% in Last Decade, Hit an All-Time Low

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) released the 2013 Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) data, which shows a 3.1 decrease compared to 2012 and almost 25 percent compared to 2004. Moreover, injuries were also down by 2.1 percent.

According to the FARS, 32,719 people died in accidents last year. Thirty-four states posted a decrease in overall traffic fatalities, with the leading ones being Ohio (132 fewer), Kentucky (108), Pennsylvania (102), South Carolina (96) and Arkansas (77).

Alcohol-related driving fatalities last year also decreased by 2.5 percent compared to 2012 but they still accounted for 31 percent of all road fatalities, or 10,076 people…

The estimated number of people injured in traffic accidents decreased across all person types: by 2.2 percent in passenger vehicle occupants, 4 percent in large truck occupants, 5.4 percent in motorcyclists, 2 percent in pedalcyclists and 13 percent in pedestrians.

In spite of the decrease, NHTSA deputy administrator David Friedman said that there’s much work to be done: “Almost 90 people on average lose their lives each day, and more than 250 are injured every hour, due to drunk driving, not wearing a seatbelt and many other factors associated with traffic crashes”, he said. “As we work each day at the NHTSA, these are tragic reminders of the importance of our efforts and how on we must build on our many successes and continue to work even harder to protect the American public.”