Traffic Fatalities Lowest Since 1950
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), a division of the United States Department of Transportation (DOT). has released the 2009 yearly traffic fatality numbers, reports the Motorcycle Riders Foundation (MRF). The report shows that traffic fatalities are at the lowest in this country since 1950.
The DOT said that traffic deaths fell 9.7 percent in 2009 to 33,808, the lowest number since 1950. In 2008, an estimated 37,423 people died on the highways. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood called the new data "a landmark achievement for public health and safety," but cautioned that too many people are killed on the road each year.
Forty-one states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico saw reductions in highway fatalities, led by Florida, with 422 fewer deaths, and Texas, down 405.
Motorcycle-related deaths were down 16 percent, the first drop in the past 11 years, from 5,312 in 2008 to 4,462 in 2009. "Of course a one year drop is encouraging but can hardly be called a trend," said Jeff Hennie, MRF Vice President of Government Relations and Public Affairs. "We in the motorcycling community need to continue to push for proper rider education and motorist awareness campaigns in order to establish a true trend." Motorcycle related injuries were also down 6.3 percent from '08 to '09, more encouraging news.
Pinning the fall in deaths to a single source is difficult. Some will say that the economic slowdown reduced vehicle travel, but that's just not true. The vehicle miles traveled for 2009 is slightly higher than it was in 2008, about 0.2 percent.
Other vehicle segments can point to manufacturer-based safety solutions such as airbags, electronic stability control systems and anti lock brakes. However, motorcycles have very limited widespread use of such technologies, leaving safer riding and better motorist awareness of motorcycles as more plausible explanations.
Read the government's full report here: http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/811363.pdf.
The MRF's Meeting of the Minds (MOTM) 2010 is less than two weeks away. This means that it's time to do any last minute maintenance to your motorcycle and start planning your trip to Peoria, Illinois for this year's premier motorcyclists' rights event. Check the MRF website for more info: www.mrf.org/events.php.
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