The NHTSA continues to report positive news about undefined in the U.S. According to Transportation Secretary LaHood, the 33,808 undefined deaths in 2009 was the lowest number since 1980. In addition, 2009 saw the lowest fatality and injury rates ever recorded: 1.13 deaths per 100 million vehicle miles traveled in 2009, compared to 1.26 deaths for 2008.
Fatalities declined in all categories of vehicles including motorcycles, which saw fatalities fall by 850 from 2008, breaking an 11-year cycle of annual increases.
“At the Department of Transportation, we are laser-focused on our top priority: safety,” said Secretary LaHood. “Today’s announcement shows that America’s roads are the safest they’ve ever been. But they must be safer. And we will not rest until they are.”
The NHTSA attributes several factors that have led to this decrease: ““Today’s numbers reflect the tangible benefits of record seat belt use and strong anti-drunk driving enforcement campaigns,” said NHTSA Administrator David Strickland. “But we are still losing more than 30,000 lives a year on our highways, and about a third of these involve drunk driving. We will continue to work with our state partners to strictly enforce both seat belt use and anti-drunk driving laws across this nation, every day and every night.”
These are encouraging statistics. I continue to wonder if the drastic decreases the past few years can be attributed to the recession and the overall state of our economy.
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