Highway deaths increased to 33,561 in 2012 – 1,082 more fatalities than in 2011. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration just released its 2012 Fatality Analysis Reporting System data that reported the majority of the deaths – 72% – took place in the first quarter of that year. Most of those involved were motorcyclists and pedestrians. Motorcycle rider fatalities increased for the third consecutive year, as did fatalities among pedestrians.
While the data marks the first increase since 2005, highway deaths over the past five years continue to remain at historic lows. Fatalities in 2011 were at the lowest level since 1949 and even with this slight increase in 2012, we are still at the same level of fatalities as 1950. Estimates on crash fatalities for the first half of 2013 indicate a decrease in deaths compared to the same timeframe in 2012.
Deaths in crashes involving drunk drivers increased 4.6% in 2012, taking 10,322 lives compared to 9,865 in 2011. The majority of those crashes involved drivers with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .15 or higher – nearly double the legal limit.The number of people killed in distraction-affected crashes decreased slightly from 3,360 in 2011 to 3,328. NHTSA is just beginning to identify distraction-related accidents, and is continuing work to improve the way it captures data to better quantify and identify potential trends in this area.
