Wednesday, April 23, 2003
NHTSA 13-03
Contact: Rae Tyson
Phone: (202) 366-9550
DOT
Releases Preliminary Estimates Of 2002 Highway Fatalities
Alcohol-related highway fatalities
increased again in 2002 while the majority of passenger vehicle occupants killed
were not wearing safety belts, according to preliminary estimates from the U. S.
Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
With
overall highway fatalities also up slightly from 2001, the grim statistics
underscore the need for better state laws that address the causes of the problem
and stricter enforcement. In 2002,
an estimated 42,850 people died on the nation’s highways, up from 42,116 in
2001. The fatality rate per 100
million vehicle miles traveled (VMT) remained unchanged at 1.51, according to
preliminary estimates.
It
was the highest number of fatalities since 1990.
"If
we are ever going to reduce the needless deaths on the nation's highways, we're
going to need the American public to bear greater responsibility for their
personal safety," said U.S. Transportation Secretary Norman Y. Mineta.
Fatalities
in rollover crashes involving sport utility vehicles and pickup trucks accounted
for 53 percent of the increase in traffic deaths.
In 2002, 10,626 people died in rollover crashes, up 4.9 percent from
10,130 in 2001.
The
preliminary report also notes some significant progress.
NHTSA said that deaths of children seven and under dropped to historic low levels. In 2002, 980 children seven and under were killed, down from 1,053 in 2001. Pedestrian deaths also declined to 4,776, a 2.2 percent drop from 2001. The number of persons injured in crashes also declined from an estimated 3,033,000 in 2001 to 2,914,000 in 2002, almost a four percent drop.
NHTSA earlier estimated
that highway crashes cost society $230.6 billion a year, about $820 per person.
"As a nation, we
should be outraged over the loss of nearly 43,000 of our friends, neighbors and
family members,” said NHTSA Administrator Jeffrey Runge, M.D. "All of us
– individuals as well as government – should resolve to make highway safety
our highest public health priority."
The preliminary 2002
statistics also continue to show the increased risk of death and injury when
drivers and passengers do not wear safety belts: 59 percent of those killed in
crashes last year were not belted.
NHTSA's Fatality
Analysis Reporting System (FARS) also shows that, in 2002:
· Motorcycle fatalities increased for the fifth year in a row following years of steady improvement. A total of 3,276 riders died, up three percent from 2001. Deaths among riders 50 and over increased 24 percent.
NHTSA
annually collects crash statistics from 50 states and the District of Columbia
to produce the annual report on traffic fatality trends.
The final 2002 report, pending completion of data collection and quality
control verification, will be available in August.
Summaries of the preliminary report are available on the NHTSA web site
at:
http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/pdf/nrd-30/NCSA/Rpts/2003/2002EARelease.pdf.
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