Traffic Deaths Are Down, but It's Still a 'National Crisis'

The number of people killed on US roadways decreased slightly last year, but government officials said the 42,795 people who died is still a national crisis, reports the AP. Estimates by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration showed that the number of fatalities dropped 0.3% from the 42,939 killed in 2021. NHTSA said in a statement that the fatality rate per 100 million vehicle miles traveled also fell slightly in 2022 to 1.35, down from 1.37 in 2021. People are driving more as the coronavirus pandemic waned, with miles traveled increasing almost 1% over 2021. And while Traffic deaths declined in the fourth quarter, marking the third straight quarterly drop, they're still close to 2021 numbers—the highest in 16 years.

"We continue to face a national crisis of traffic deaths on our roadways, and everyone has a role to play in reversing the rise that we experienced in recent years," Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said in a statement Thursday. The department has adopted a national safe systems strategy to reduce the deaths. It includes over $800 million in grants to help communities with projects in high-crash areas, NHTSA said in a statement. Estimates from the agency generally are close to the final numbers, which for 2022 will be released next spring.