Traffic Deaths Continued to Climb in 2022

Traffic deaths on America’s roads have risen steadily since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. New statistics indicate the trend has continued in 2022.

This summer, highway authorities revealed the first three months of 2022 were the deadliest on the nation’s roads in two decades.

Statistics for Car Crash Deaths

The Washington Post noted crash deaths rose by at least 50 percent in seven states and the District of Columbia. Overall, road fatalities increased by up to 7 percent compared to the first three months of 2021.

Behind these figures are terrible tragedies on the roads of the United States. As Virginia car accident lawyers, we see the heartbreaking fallout from road deaths first-hand. We help the families of those who lose a loved one to bring wrongful death lawsuits against at-fault drivers. We help those who are injured on the highways.

More than 9,500 people lost their lives in the first three months of 2020, according to estimates from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

The fatality rate on the roads of the United States rose from 1.25 deaths per 100 million vehicle miles traveled in 2021 to 1.27 fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles traveled.

Highest Death Rate on the Road in 2021

Figures from the NHTSA revealed 2021 was a dire year for traffic accidents. The highways agency projected the highest number of deaths since 2005 and the largest increase in the history of the Fatal Analysis Reporting System.

The NHTSA said 42,915 people died in motor vehicle crashes in 2021, a 10.5 percent rise over 2020. Although fewer cars, trucks, and motorcycles were on the roads in 2020 when the pandemic broke out, the fatal accident rate increased in 2020.

Reasons for Increase in Road Deaths

Some public health experts have blamed the pandemic on the increase, stating it stressed people out and caused more poor driving and recklessness.

“While there is no one causative factor, the reckless behavior is likely the confluence of increased drug and alcohol use, lack of safety constraints (like seat belts and texting), and greater opportunities for speeding and reckless driving given still fewer cars on the road, which is linked to feelings of liberation,” Karl Minges, interim dean at the University of New Haven’s School of Health Science told NBC News.

The 968 people who lost their lives In Virginia in 2021 represented a 14.3 percent increase over the 2020 death toll. The 58,786 people injured was an increase of 11.6 percent. Crashes caused by excess speed and alcohol rose in 2021.

North Carolina is one of the states that recorded a rise in fatal accidents in the first three months of 2022.

Contact Our Attorneys for Traffic Accidents

We are concerned about the upsurge in speeding, reckless, and drunk and distracted driving on the highways of America. This epidemic is causing untold heartache and financial misery every day for people. If you have lost a loved one due to the actions of another driver in Virginia or been injured, please call Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers.