Skip to main content

US traffic deaths up 7.7 per cent in 2015

Preliminary data released by the US Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) show a 7.7 per cent increase in motor vehicle traffic deaths in 2015. An estimated 35,200 people died in 2015, up from the 32,675 reported fatalities in 2014. Although the data are preliminary and requires additional analysis, the early NHTSA estimate shows 9 out of 10 regions within the United States had increased traffic deaths in 2015. The most significant increases came for pedest
July 8, 2016 Read time: 2 mins
Preliminary data released by the 324 US Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) show a 7.7 per cent increase in motor vehicle traffic deaths in 2015. An estimated 35,200 people died in 2015, up from the 32,675 reported fatalities in 2014.

Although the data are preliminary and requires additional analysis, the early NHTSA estimate shows 9 out of 10 regions within the United States had increased traffic deaths in 2015. The most significant increases came for pedestrians and bicyclists.

If these projec¬tions are realised, fatalities will be at the highest level since 2008, when 37,423 fatalities were reported. Preliminary data reported by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) shows that vehicle miles travelled in 2015 increased by about 107.2 billion miles, or about a 3.5-per cent increase.

According to NHTSA administrator Dr Mark Rosekind, an improved economy and lower fuel prices has led to Americans driving more, but only explains part of the increase in fatalities. He says 94 per cent of crashes can be tied back to a human choice or error, so more focus is needed on improving human behaviour while promoting vehicle technology that not only protects people in crashes, but helps prevent crashes in the first place.

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • $4 per gallon gas won’t alter driving behaviour, claims national study
    May 15, 2012
    As America braces for $4 average price for gasoline and the potential fallout from breaching this psychological barrier, a new study has just been released by the Mobility Collaborative that predicts $4 per gallon is not enough to significantly reduce the number of people choosing to drive alone as single occupant vehicle travellers (SOV).
  • Remove 80 per cent of traffic lights to boost economy and road safety, says IEA report
    January 26, 2016
    In a new report, authors Martin Cassini and Richard Wellings of the UK Institute of Economic Affairs demonstrate what they say are the negative social and economic effects of the government’s traffic management strategy, and argue for policies that harness voluntary cooperation among road-users. Using case-studies from around Britain, in conjunction with evidence from successful schemes in both Holland and Germany, they estimate that approximately 80 per cent of traffic lights could be ripped out in the UK.
  • Will volatile fuel prices increase use of public transport? Or not?
    May 16, 2012
    A day after ITS International published details of a report from The Mobility Collaborative - $4 per gallon gas won't alter driving behaviour, claims national study - the American Public Transportation Association (APTA) and Building America's Future (BAF) has released a study which draws the opposite conclusion and predicts that record numbers of Americans will turn to public transportation as a cost-cutting measure in the face of volatile gas prices.
  • Cost benefit: just $25 boosts pedestrian safety in Florida
    April 29, 2019
    A relatively straightforward change to the way that pedestrians cross the street in a Florida city has made a significant safety improvement. And what’s more, it was cheap, finds David Crawford Installing a lead pedestrian interval (LPI) system at 25 central business district signalised intersections in the Florida city of Lakeland has cut numbers of incidents involving pedestrians by some 60% - at a cost of US$25 for 30 minutes' work, according to traffic operations manager Angelo Rao.