Traffic deaths spike in first 6 months of this year

The financial impact of traffic accidents, which factors in deaths, injuries and property damage, has also risen sharply, reports the NSC, climbing by 24 percent to $152 billion during the first half of this year compared to 2014.

“Follow the numbers: the trend we are seeing on our roadways is like a flashing red light – danger lies ahead”, said Deborah A.P. Hersman, president and CEO of the National Safety Council. If the trend continues, the U.S. could see the roadway death toll rise to its highest level since 2007, according to the National Safety Council. The will increase started within the final quarter of 2014 and have been recorded persistently by way of every month of this yr, Hersman stated. People drove 1.26 trillion miles within the first 5 months of 2015, passing the earlier document, 1.23 trillion, set in Might 2007.

However, the cumulative increase in vehicle mileage this year through May is 3.4 percent, far less than the 14 percent increase in deaths, Hersman noted. On average, gas prices are down 30% from 2014. Teen driving deaths are additionally down, and seatbelt use is up.

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But at the same time some states have raised speed limits recently and crashes linked to distracted driving have become more common due to motorists fumbling with cell phones and other handheld devices, the council said. The council estimated in a report this spring that a quarter of all crashes involve cellphone use.

More than 2.2 million people have suffered serious injuries in crashes.

Jonathan Adkins, executive director of Governors Highway Safety Association, which represents state highway safety offices, confirmed that states have taken note of the trend as well.

The council says part of the uptick in traffic deaths can be attributed to lower gas prices.

“The increase is definitely troubling”, Adkins said. “However after such historic declines in recent times, it isn’t sudden to see an upswing”.