Global InformationTransportation safety in the United States information
 | This article's lead section may be too short to adequately summarize the key points. (December 2023) |
Transportation safety in the United States encompasses safety of transportation in the United States, including automobile crashes, airplane crashes, rail crashes, and other mass transit incidents, although the most fatalities are generated by road incidents annually killing 32,479 people in 2011 to over 42,000 people in 2022. The number of deaths per passenger-mile on commercial airlines in the United States between 2000 and 2010 was about 0.2 deaths per 10 billion passenger-miles.[3][4] For driving, the rate was 150 per 10 billion vehicle-miles: 750 times higher per mile than for flying in a commercial airplane.
There is a considerable and growing gap between the United States and other comparable countries in terms of roadway deaths, with the United States having higher death rates.[5] In 2014, two different U.S. government estimated that there were 33,736 or 32,744 motor vehicle traffic deaths in 2014.[6][7] The National Safety Council (NSC), a nonprofit safety advocacy group, estimates U.S. motor vehicle deaths in 2016 were 40,200, a 14% increase from its 2014 estimate.[8] After decades of improvements in road safety for pedestrians, the pedestrian death rate in the United States has skyrocketed since 2009 while most comparable countries have experienced declining pedestrian death rates.[5]
In 2020, fatalities increased to about 38,680 deaths, from about 36,000 in 2019, even with fewer drivers on the road and fewer miles traveled. The increase was attributed to more risky driving behavior, including speeding, failing to wear seat belts, and driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol.[9] 2021 and 2022 experienced even more deaths, having 42,939 and 42,795 motor vehicle fatalities, respectively.[10]
- ^ "OECD Data / Road Accidents". data.OECD.org. Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). December 15, 2023. Archived from the original on July 6, 2023.
- ^ Leonhardt, David (December 11, 2023). "The Rise in U.S. Traffic Deaths / What's behind America's unique problem with vehicle crashes?". The New York Times. Archived from the original on December 14, 2023.
- ^ "Fatalities". Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Archived from the original on October 4, 2018. Retrieved December 14, 2018.
- ^ "Passenger miles". Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Archived from the original on April 3, 2017. Retrieved April 3, 2017.
- ^ a b Badger, Emily; Blatt, Ben; Katz, Josh (December 11, 2023). "Why Are So Many American Pedestrians Dying at Night?". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331.
- ^ "FastStats Homepage – Injuries". Centers for Disease Control and Prevention – National Center for Health Statistics. Archived from the original on March 13, 2017. Retrieved March 14, 2017.
- ^ "2015 Motor Vehicle Crashes: Overview". National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Archived from the original on March 1, 2017. Retrieved March 14, 2017.
- ^ Beene, Ryan (February 15, 2017). "Deaths on U.S. Roads Reach Highest Since 2007 Amid More Driving". Bloomberg. Archived from the original on March 24, 2017. Retrieved March 14, 2017.
- ^ "Traffic deaths spiked in 2020 despite pandemic | TheHill". June 4, 2021. Archived from the original on June 5, 2021. Retrieved June 5, 2021.
- ^ "NHTSA Estimates for 2022 Show Roadway Fatalities Remain Flat After Two Years of Dramatic Increases". April 20, 2023. Retrieved September 12, 2023.