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Traffic fatalities in the USA fell to an all-time low in 2010 even as Americans drove more miles, according to new projections from the federal government...There were 32,788 road deaths last year, a 3% drop from 2009, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood says, citing early projections from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The decrease came despite an estimated increase of 20.5 billion (0.7%) in miles driven.
TRAFFIC CONGESTION: Up 11% in metro areas
The decline coincides with the slow recovery of the national economy and a rebound in traffic congestion levels from declines seen when people drove less during the recession.
"Last year's drop in traffic fatalities is welcome news, and it proves that we can make a difference," LaHood said. "Still, too many of our friends and neighbors are killed in preventable roadway tragedies every day. We will continue doing everything possible to make cars safer, increase seat belt use, put a stop to drunk driving and distracted driving and encourage drivers to put safety first."The fatality rate — deaths per 100 million miles driven — fell from 1.13 in 2009 to 1.09, also lowest since the government started tracking in 1949.
The numbers have not yet been crunched to see whether there were decreases in specific categories of fatalities such as drunken or distracted driving. Traffic deaths have declined steadily since 2005, falling 25%.
It's too early to explain why deaths keep falling, says Lee Munnich, director of the Center for Excellence in Rural Safety at the University of Minnesota. "Some of the credit can go to federal and state efforts to reduce fatalities," more states toughening seat belt laws "and the effect on fatalities as more people buckle up," he says.
There are hints that the five-year drop might be ending. According to NHTSA data, deaths fell 11.4% in the first quarter of 2010 and 5% in the second quarter compared with 2009 but rose 1.6% in the third quarter and 1.8% in the fourth, paralleling the increase in miles traveled.