These Fatality Stats Are The Highest In A Decade
Stemming from a change in driving habits and a post-lockdown increase in drivers on the road, vehicular crashes in the first quarter of 2021 were the highest since around 2009.
It’s thought that the emptier roads during the lockdowns encouraged drivers to drive faster and pay less attention, two behaviors which seem to have followed drivers to the more crowded highways of 2021.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, around 8,730 people died in vehicle crashes in the first 3 months of 2021--an increase of 10.5% from the same period of time in 2020 (which saw 7900 fatalities). When measured in fatalities per 100 million miles, there was a rise to 1.26 per 100 million miles traveled, up from 1.12 in 2020.
Vehicle deaths have been on a rise since 2020 going into 2021, and the stats have skewed heavily in favor of some states, with Oregon seeing a 51% increase, South Dakota a 51% increase, Minnesota a 41% increase, and Idaho a 39% increase.
This NHTSA recommends the usual measures, like not driving while impaired, distracted, and drowsy driving, wearing their seatbelts, and watching out for pedestrians and cyclists.
Here at Rear View Safety, we lean more towards getting the right safety gear--after all, it’s one of the few things on the road that you’re actually in control of...
