Traffic Deaths Are Trending Down, But Not In North Carolina
There’s some good news on our nation’s roadways. Traffic deaths are trending down according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
After hitting record numbers during the pandemic, incidences of people being killed in motor vehicle accidents are lower, based on the number of crashes during the first six months of 2023. But the news isn’t all good. Traffic deaths are still higher than the same period in 2019 (pre-pandemic).
The state of Maine had the largest decrease in traffic fatalities with a 46.6% reduction. Rhode Island saw a whopping increase of 193%. In the region including North Carolina, Kentucky, Virginia, West Virginia and Maryland, there was a 3% uptick in traffic deaths.
“After spiking during the pandemic, traffic deaths are continuing to slowly come down, but we still have a long way to go,” U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said in a statement.
The lower traffic death numbers come despite an overall increase in the number of miles traveled in the U.S.
