2025 SafeTREC Traffic Safety Facts: Older Adult Road Users

Introduction 

The older adult population in the United States aged 65 and older is expected to almost double between 2016 and 2060, from 49.2 million to almost 95 million people.  As drivers age, physical and mental changes, including reduced visual acuity, increased fragility, restricted movement, and cognitive impairment, may, directly and indirectly, result in driving impairments.

The Federal Highway Administration’s Safe System Approach recognizes human mistakes and vulnerabilities and designs a system with many redundancies to protect everyone.  Designing streets to limit the impact of kinetic energy transfer in crashes may provide special benefits to older adults, as increased fragility exacerbates the severity of traffic injuries and the likelihood of death.

Analyses presented in this section include fatal and serious injuries to drivers, passengers, bicyclists, pedestrians, and other non-motor vehicle occupants aged 65 and older.

Older Adult Road Users Fatality Trends Nationwide and in California from 2019 to 2023

Trend-line chart detailing older adult fatalities nationally and in California from 2019 to 2023. For more information, go to the following summary.

Data source: Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) 2019 – 2022 Final File & 2023 Annual Report File (ARF)

Summary 

  • Nationally, 7891 older adults were killed in motor vehicle crashes in 2023.

  • In California, there were 647 older adults killed in motor vehicle traffic crashes in 2023.

  • Older adult fatalities decreased nationally by 1.6  percent between 2022 and 2023.

  • Older adult fatalities decreased in California 7.3 percent between 2022 and 2023.

Nationwide Summary

Breakdown of Older Adult Fatalities Nationwide and in California in 2023

Break-down of fatalities 65 and older versus 65 and younger nationwide and in California in 2023. For more information, go to the following summary.

Data Source: FARS 2019 – 2022 Final File, 2023 ARF

Summary 

  • In 2023 nationwide, 19 percent (or 7891) of all motor vehicle fatalities were aged 65 and older. 

  • In 2023 in California, 16 percent (or 647) of all motor vehicle fatalities were aged 65 and older.

Licensed Older Adult Drivers Nationwide in 2023

Infographic detailing the number of adults who are licensed drivers nationwide and in California in 2023. For more information see the following summary.

Data Source:  “Highway Statistics Series.” Table DL-22 - Highway Statistics 2023 - Policy | Federal Highway Administration, https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/statistics/2023/. Accessed 23 Sept. 2025. 

Summary 

  • In 2023 nationwide, 237,655,885 adults 65 and older were licensed drivers, accounting for 22.2 percent of all licensed drivers.

  • In California, 5,212,638  adults 65 and older were licensed drivers in 2023, accounting for 18.7 percent of all licensed California drivers. 

California Summary 

The figures in this section refer to fatal and serious injuries to drivers, passengers, bicyclists, pedestrians, and other non-motor vehicle occupants aged 65 and older in California in 2023. 

Primary Crash Factors of Older Adult Fatal and Serious Injury Crashes

Top Five Primary Crash Factors of Older Adult Fatal and Serious Injury Crashes in California (2023)

Bar chart detailing the top five most common primary crash factors in older adult fatal and serious injury crashes in California in 2023. For more information, go to the following summary.

Note: For more information on the different Crash Types, please see the Transportation Injury Mapping System (TIMS) Help FAQ page, in the Codebook - Crash Level Section

Data source: Provisional Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System (SWITRS) 2023

Summary 

  • Improper turning was the most common primary crash factor in older adult fatal and serious injury (FSI) crashes in 2023 making up 19.5 percent, followed by unsafe speed and automobile right of way accounting for 15.5 and 12.9 percent respectively. 

  • Pedestrian violation followed by pedestrian right of way made up the fourth and fifth most common primary crash factor in older adults FSI crashes in 2023, accounting for 10.5 and 8.8 percent respectively. 

Primary Crash Factors of Older Adult Pedestrian Fatal and Serious Injury Crashes

Top Five Primary Crash Factors of Older Adult Pedestrian Fatal and Serious Injury Crashes in California (2023)

Bar chart detailing the top five most common primary crash factors in older adult pedestrian fatal and serious injury crashes in California in 2023. For more information, go to the following summary.

Note: Pedestrian violations occur when a pedestrian commits a violation, whereas a pedestrian right-of-way is defined as when a pedestrian’s right-of-way is violated. However, neither indicates which party is at fault for the crash. For more information on the different Crash Types, please see the Transportation Injury Mapping System (TIMS) Help FAQ page, in the Codebook - Crash Level Section

Data source: Provisional Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System (SWITRS) 2023

Summary 

  • Pedestrian violation was the most common primary crash factor in older adult pedestrian FSI crashes in 2023 making up 38.4 percent, followed by pedestrian right of way and unsafe speed accounting for 32.3 and 7.2 percent respectively. 

  • Unknown followed by improper turning made up the fourth and fifth most common primary crash factor in older adult pedestrians FSI crashes in 2023 accounting for 6.6 and 3.1 percent respectively. 

Older Adult Pedestrian Fatalities and Serious Injuries

Pedestrian and Older Adult Fatalities and Serious Injuries in California in 2023

Infographic comparing serious injury and fatality percentages between older adults and pedestrians in California in 2023. For more information, please see the following summary.

Data Sources:  Provisional Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System (SWITRS) 2023 & 2023 ARF

Summary 

  • In 2023, of older adults killed in traffic crashes in California, 31.1 percent (or 201) were pedestrians. 

  • In 2023, 18.2 percent (or 201) of pedestrians killed in traffic crashes were older adults. 

  • In 2023, of older adults seriously injured in traffic crashes in California, 15 percent (or 395) were pedestrians. 

Data definitions expressed as queries are available in the data dictionary on google sheets. 

References

  1. Vespa, J., Medina, L., & Armstrong, D. M. (2020, February – Revised). Demographic turning points for the United States: Population projections for 2020 to 2060 (Report No. P25-1144). U.S. Census Bureau. https://www.census.gov/library/publications/2020/demo/p25-1144.html

  2. Federal Highway Administration. (2023). Highway statistics series: Table DL-22 - Highway statistics 2023 - Policy. U.S. Department of Transportation. https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/policyinformation/statistics/2023/

  3. National Center for Statistics and Analysis. (2025, April). Overview of motor vehicle traffic crashes in 2023 (Traffic Safety Facts Research Note, Report No. DOT HS 813 705). National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

  4. Federal Highway Administration. (2023, August 4). Zero deaths and safe system. U.S. Department of Transportation. https://highways.dot.gov/safety/zero-deaths

  5. U.S. Census Bureau. (2021, October 8). 2020 census: Redistricting file (Public Law 94-171) dataset. https://www.census.gov/data/datasets/2020/dec/2020-census-redistricting-summary-file-dataset.html

This report was prepared in cooperation with the California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS). The opinions, findings, and conclusions expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and not necessarily those of OTS.

Funding for this program was provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.