Fact Sheet

Collisions involving motorcycles are a major traffic safety concern in the United States. Motorcycle riders comprise a disproportionate share of all injured and killed vehicle occupants. In 2016, motorcycle riders were 28 times more likely than passenger car occupants to be fatally injured in a traffic collision, per vehicle miles traveled. The primary countermeasures used to address this problem have included motorcycle helmet laws and other helmet-oriented programs, rider training and licensing programs, vehicle enhancements, including anti-lock braking technology, rider conspicuity...

While alcohol-involved driving fatalities have fallen significantly in the last three decades, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reports that alcohol-involved driving still comprises a large percentage of traffic injuries and fatalities. On average in 2017, one person died from an alcohol-involved driving collision every 48 minutes. There was a decrease in the numbers of alcohol-involved driving fatalities in the United States between 2016 and 2017. The figures refer to drivers, passengers, bicyclists, and pedestrians fatally killed or seriously injured in an...

As a commute mode, walking is gaining in numbers. The Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA) reports that pedestrian fatalities in the nation have increased disproportionately to other traffic deaths. Pedestrian fatalities as a proportion of total traffic deaths increased from 12 percent in 2008 to 16 percent in 2017. Pedestrian fatalities increased by 35 percent from 2008 to 2017 while other traffic deaths decreased by 6 percent. The GSHA also reported the largest proportion of pedestrian deaths around divided highways, which generally have speed limits of 45 or more and lack...