 The Transportation Department said late Wednesday that traffic
deaths fell 9.7 percent in 2009 to 33,808, the lowest number since
1950. In 2008, an estimated 37,423 people died on the highways.
Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said the annual report "shows
that America's roads are the safest they've ever been."
"But they must be safer," he said. "And we will not rest until
they are."
Forty-one states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico saw
reductions in highway fatalities, led by Florida with 422 fewer
deaths and Texas, down 405.
The rate of deaths per 100 million miles traveled also dropped to
a record low. It fell to 1.13 deaths per 100 million miles in 2009,
compared with 1.26 the year before.
Year-to-year declines in highway deaths have occurred in previous
economic downturns, when fewer people are out on the road. Traffic
deaths decreased in the early 1980s and early 1990s when difficult
economic conditions led many drivers to cut back on discretionary
travel.
But last year's reduction in fatalities came even as the
estimated number of miles traveled by motorists in 2009 increased
0.2 percent over 2008 levels.
Barbara Harsha, executive director for the Governors Highway
Safety Association, attributed the improvements to more motorists
wearing seat belts, better enforcement of drunken driving laws and
enhanced vehicle safety features.
Side air bags that protect the head and midsection are becoming
standard equipment on many new vehicles. And electronic stability
control, which helps motorists avoid rollover crashes, is more
common on new cars and trucks.
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LaHood has sought to crack down on distracted driving, urging
states to adopt stringent laws against sending text messages from
behind the wheel, as well as other distractions.
Harsha said LaHood's "focus on distracted driving has brought an
unprecedented focus to behavioral highway safety, and as a result,
lives are being saved."
The annual highway safety report also found:
-
Motorcycle
fatalities broke 11 years of annual increases, falling by 16
percent, from 5,312 in 2008 to 4,462 in 2009.
-
The number of
people injured in motor vehicle crashes fell for a 10th
consecutive year.
-
Alcohol-impaired driving deaths
declined 7.4 percent in 2009 to 10,839 deaths, compared with
11,711 in 2008.
[Associated Press;
By KEN THOMAS]
Copyright 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This
material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or
redistributed.
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