US EditionUS traffic deaths fall to lowest number since 2019
The fatality rate also fell to 1.10 deaths per 100 million miles traveled, the second-lowest level in U.S. history, NHTSA said.
- On April 1, The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reported traffic deaths fell 6.7% to 36,640 last year, marking the lowest number since 2019.
- American road fatalities surged during the COVID pandemic, with deaths jumping 10.8% in 2021 to 43,230, the highest in a single year since 2005.
- Jonathan Morrison, who heads the NHTSA, said the agency is "doubling down on safety strategies that reduce risky driving behaviors before they cost lives," marking the fourth straight year of declines.
- A 2023 NHTSA study found crashes cost society $1.37 trillion, equivalent to 1.6% of economic output, while directly costing taxpayers $30 billion.
- Congress approved $5 billion over five years as part of a $1 trillion 2021 infrastructure law to address road safety, supporting the recent downward trend.
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9 Articles
NHTSA Projects 6.7% Drop in Traffic Deaths in 2025, Reaching Prepandemic Levels
An estimated 36,640 people died in motor vehicle crashes in 2025, a 6.7% decrease from 39,254 fatalities reported in 2024, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said April 1 in its annual early estimate of traffic fatalities. The decline brings total roadway deaths back to prepandemic levels last seen in 2019 and would represent the …
Traffic fatalities fell by 6.7% in 2025, USDOT reports
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s (USDOT) National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced a significant decrease in traffic fatalities last year. On April 1, 2026, officials reported 36,640 traffic fatalities in 2025, a 6.7% decrease from 2024. USDOT called this the “second-lowest traffic fatality rate in recorded history” for U.S. roadways. There were 39,254 people killed in traffic crashes in the U.S. in 2024. When annou…
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