BTS | Table 2-28: Motor Vehicle Fatal Crashes by Posted Speed Limit

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Table 2-28: Motor Vehicle Fatal Crashes by Posted Speed Limit

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	1975	1980	1985	1990	1991	1992	1993	1994	1995	1996	1997	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002
TOTAL fatal crashes	39,161	45,284	39,196	39,836	36,937	34,942	35,780	^R36,799	^R37,789	^R38,041	^R37,876	^R37,631	37,140	37,526	^R37,862	38,309
Under 55 mph, total	15,233	20,079	19,278	19,136	17,507	16,827	16,985	^R17,361	^R17,849	^R17,765	^R17,673	^R17,424	16,963	17,054	^R17,582	17,413
5,10,15, 20, 25 mph^a	2,617	2,865	2,504	2,234	2,097	1,911	1,895	^R1,947	^R1,943	^R1,964	^R2,012	^R1,913	1,863	1,827	^R1,919	1,851
30, 35 mph	6,099	8,527	7,890	7,756	6,908	6,696	6,759	^R6,738	^R6,871	^R6,614	^R6,542	^R6,200	5,946	6,079	^R6,260	6,025
40, 45 mph	4,276	6,256	6,812	7,092	6,608	6,345	6,454	^R6,792	^R7,086	^R7,260	^R7,312	^R7,519	7,245	7,315	^R7,576	7,703
50 mph	2,241	2,431	2,072	2,054	1,894	1,875	1,877	^R1,884	^R1,949	^R1,927	^R1,807	^R1,792	1,909	1,833	^R1,827	1,834
55 mph and above, total	16,095	20,352	18,871	19,749	18,630	17,450	18,144	^R18,830	^R19,278	^R19,587	19,388	^R19,451	19,373	19,735	^R19,416	19,778
55 mph	16,094	20,352	18,863	17,556	16,543	15,444	15,980	^R16,644	^R16,891	^R14,224	13,034	12,640	12,184	12,143	^R11,847	12,209
60 mph	0	0	2	18	9	4	9	13	16	523	935	1,073	1,069	1,163	^R1,221	1,256
65 mph	1	0	2	2,175	2,078	2,002	2,155	2,173	2,323	3,214	3,311	3,421	3,537	3,686	^R3,721	3,703
70 mph	0	0	3	0	0	0	0	0	38	1,282	1,633	1,835	2,079	2,230	^R2,116	2,019
Over 70 mph	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	10	344	475	482	504	513	^R511	591
Unknown, total	7,833	4,853	1,047	951	800	665	651	608	^R649	^R688	815	756	804	737	^R864	939

KEY: mph = miles per hour.

^aThe "No Statutory Limit" speed limit designation is included in this category.

NOTES

In 1974, Congress enacted a national maximum speed limit of 55 miles per hour (mph). Amendments in 1987 and 1991 allowed states to increase speed limits to 65 mph on rural Interstates and similar highways.

The National Maximum Speed Limit was repealed in late 1995; speed limits are again set by the states, some of which have raised their maximum speed limits to 70 mph or above.

SOURCE

U.S. Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, National Center for Statistics and Analysis, Traffic Safety Facts 2000, DOT HS 809 337 (Washington, DC: December 2001), table 30, and the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) Web-based Encyclopedia available at http://www-fars.nthsa.dot.gov as of Nov. 19, 2003.