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New data is out about traffic fatalities in 2020 and, despite the lockdowns from Covid, the numbers are shocking. Deaths on the road were higher during 2020 than any other year dating back to 2007 - during a year where less people were driving, Bloomberg reported this week. Even more alarming is the fact that 2021 could wind up being worse, as the government estimates that 20,160 have died from crashes in the first half of 2021 - a stunning 18.4% increase from 2020. Transportation Secretary "Mayor Pete" said in October, when the numbers were released: “This is a crisis....

Pedestrian deaths surged by an estimated 10 percent last year as the economy improved, the price of gas plunged and motorists put more miles behind the wheel than ever before, according to an analysis of preliminary state traffic fatality data. The growing use of cellphones distracting drivers and walkers may also be partially to blame, states a report released by the Governors Highway Safety Association, which represents governors’ highway safety offices. Warmer weather and shorter winters along with a greater awareness of health benefits may also be encouraging people to walk more. […] The data analyzed were from the first...

Leads to lower consumption of alcohol DENVER (Nov. 29, 2011) – A groundbreaking new study shows that laws legalizing medical marijuana have resulted in a nearly nine percent drop in traffic deaths and a five percent reduction in beer sales. "Our research suggests that the legalization of medical marijuana reduces traffic fatalities through reducing alcohol consumption by young adults," said Daniel Rees, professor of economics at the University of Colorado Denver who co-authored the study with D. Mark Anderson, assistant professor of economics at Montana State University. The researchers collected data from a variety of sources including the National Survey...

NHTSA decided in 1996 to make FARS data easier to obtain by using Internet technology. This FARS Web-Based Encyclopedia offers a more intuitive and powerful approach for retrieving fatal crash information.

Legal loopholes mean more drunken driving defendants get back on the road in the Coastal Bend, where more than 100 died in alcohol-related car accidents from 1998 to 2001. In the state with the most alcohol-related traffic deaths and a reputation for letting drunken drivers off the hook, the Coastal Bend lags far behind the rest of Texas in drunk-driving convictions. Texas led the nation last year in alcohol-related traffic deaths with more than 1,740. Critics blame lax prosecution efforts, high dismissal rates and weak laws. In Nueces County, the likelihood that a case will be dismissed is more than...

<p>WASHINGTON (AP) --  The number of children killed in auto crashes last year was the lowest since the government started tracking traffic deaths 36 years ago, according to figures released Monday.</p> <p>The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reported 2,658 children under 16 died in 2001, down 5.4 percent from the previous record low of 2,811 set the previous year.</p>