Fatalities in police-reported, alcohol-involved traffic crashes rose 5% last year, just about half the increase in crash fatalities overall.
That estimate is courtesy of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration which yesterday provided a preliminary look at traffic fatality data. NHTSA projects that an estimated 42,915 people died in motor vehicle traffic crashes last year, a 10.5% increase from the 38,824 fatalities in 2020. The projection is the highest number of fatalities since 2005 and the largest annual percentage increase in the Fatality Analysis Reporting System’s history.
The increase also matches the increase in vehicle miles traveled by drivers in 2021. Vehicle miles traveled by drivers in 2021 increased by about 325 billion miles, an 11% jump compared with the previous year, according to the Federal Highway Administration.
Forty-four states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico are all projected to have had an increase in traffic deaths, as compared to 2020.
Preliminary data reported by the Federal Highway Administration show that vehicle miles traveled in 2021 increased by about 325 billion miles, or about 11.2%, as compared to 2020.
Data estimates show the fatality rate for 2021 was 1.33 fatalities per 100 million VMT, marginally down from 1.34 fatalities in 2020. While the fatality rate continued to rise in the first quarter, it declined in the other three quarters of 2021, compared to 2020.
Additionally, the traffic fatalities in the following categories showed relatively large increases in 2021, as compared to 2020:
- Fatalities in multi-vehicle crashes up 16%
- Fatalities on urban roads up 16%
- Fatalities on rural interstates were up 15%.
- Fatalities among drivers 65 and older up 14%, reversing the decline in fatalities to those 65 and older seen in 2020.
- Fatalities in the 25-to-34 age group were up 10%, the 35-to-44 age group were up 15%, the 45-to-54 age group were up 14%
- Pedestrian fatalities up 13%
- Fatalities in crashes involving at least one large truck up 13%
- Daytime fatalities up 11%
- Motorcyclist fatalities up 9%
- Bicyclist fatalities up 5%
- Fatalities in speeding-related crashes up 5%
- Fatalities in police-reported, alcohol-involvement crashes up 5%, that’s higher than increases seen before the pandemic.
There were some surprises in the report. For instance, passenger vehicle occupant fatalities increased 2% in vehicles older than 10 years while occupant fatalities in vehicles less than 10 years old jumped 10% — an increase five times the older-vehicle rate.
The report also shows the fatality rate for vehicle occupants ejected from the vehicle increased 2%.