Important Highlights in the Latest NHTSA Traffic Fatality Statistical Analysis

This post is courtesy of Los Angeles car accident lawyer Mesriani Law Group.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has recently released a new data analysis for the year 2011 in which it was found that the total number of deaths in motor vehicle accidents decreased from 32,999 in 2010 to 32,367 in 2011. The 2011 traffic fatality rate was a 1.9 percent decrease from the previous year.

In general, the 2011 number was a 26 percent decline in traffic deaths since 2005 and was the lowest in more than six decades. With this NHTSA’s significant finding, it is already safe to say that the downward trend in traffic accidents, at least on the statistical standpoint, continues to happen year after year.

But then, the number of motor vehicle accident deaths is not the only major development in 2011. There are also significant findings within the NHTSA’s data analysis that must be regarded highly in the same light as the 2011 figure.

Some important highlights

First is the number of crashes that happened in 2011. Of the 5,338,000 total crashes that happened that year, some 29,757 of them were fatal. The figure for fatal crashes the previous year was 30,296. Meanwhile, 5,308,000 of them were non-fatal, and were classified as either injury crashes (1,530,000) or property-damage-only crashes (3,778,000).

Second is the number of distracted driving-related injuries and deaths. While the NHTSA tackles this issue very seriously, the figures somehow prove otherwise. The deaths in those crashes went up from 3,267 in 2010 to 3,331 in 2011; a 1.9 percent increase. Surprisingly, the total number of injuries went down from about 416,000 in 2010 to around 387,000 in 2011; a 7 percent decrease.

Third is the number of fatalities in terms of the vehicle involved. Some 21,253 occupants of passenger vehicles (cars and light trucks) were killed in 2011, as compared to 22,273 the previous year. Also, some 635 large truck occupants were killed, 105 more than in 2010. Finally, the number of fatalities among motorcycle users increased from 4,518 in 2010 to 4,612 in 2011.

Lastly is the total number of fatalities as distributed by state. The State of California had a 2.6 percent increase from 2010 in 2011 in terms of traffic deaths. The figure for 2011 was 2,791, as compared to 2,720 the previous year.

The significance of the whole NHTSA analysis

Surely, the 2011 NHTSA data analysis has been seen as a development in the state of traffic safety in the United States, thanks largely to the NHTSA’s ongoing effort to promote road safety through its campaigns and tie-ups with state and local agencies.

Incidentally, a Los Angeles car accident lawyer believes that there is still work to be done for both the federal and state/local traffic agencies, as well as the motorists to further realize the goal of reducing the number of accidents and related injuries and deaths.

Source: http://www.pissd.com/2013/01/important-highlights-in-the-latest-nhtsa-traffic-fatality-statistical-analysis/

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