According to estimates for traffic fatalities in 2022 by The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), traffic fatalities remained flat last year after two years of significant increases.
A press release by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) noted that the NHTSA has released its estimates for traffic fatalities in 2022, with numbers showing a small decrease of 42,795 deaths in motor vehicle traffic crashes in 2022, compared to 42,939 fatalities in 2021, a decrease of approximately 0.3%. While the decrease is small, it is significant given the dramatic increases in fatalities seen over the past few years. It is also noteworthy that Americans are now driving more than in 2021, an increase of nearly 1% over the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We continue to face a national crisis of traffic deaths on our roadways, and everyone has a role to play in reversing the rise that we experienced in recent years,” Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said, according to the press release. “Through our National Roadway Safety Strategy, we’re strengthening traffic safety across the country, and working toward a day when these preventable tragedies are a thing of the past.”
NHTSA also reports a decline in fatalities during the fourth quarter of 2022, marking the third straight quarterly decline after seven consecutive quarters of increases that began in 2020. The agency estimates that 27 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico experienced decreases in fatalities in 2022, while 23 states saw increases.
DOT's National Roadway Safety Strategy (NRSS) was launched in January 2022 and is meant to serve as a framework to address the nationwide crisis of traffic fatalities and injuries. The plan builds on the Safe System Approach to promote "safer roads, safer people, safer vehicles, safer speeds, and better post-crash care." The initiative is funded by President Biden's Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and DOT has announced that it has made more than $800 million in grants available to community projects to address high-crash areas.
