Deadly Decade: U.S. traffic deaths soar by 30% since 2014
Center for Auto Safety Executive Director Michael Brooks said the spike in traffic fatalities started in 2020 and peaked in 2022.
“When COVID hit, we saw a pretty significant jump,” Brooks said, pointing to a graph of National Highway Traffic Safety Administration crash data.
By Angie Moreschi, Nathan Aaron, and Mike Griffith
September 27, 2024
Driving on U.S. roads has gotten more dangerous during the past decade, with a 30%increase in traffic fatalities since 2014.
During that time, many cities around the country have adopted traffic safety programs like Vision Zero to help reduce traffic deaths, but in most places it’s not working. At least not yet.
More than 40,000 people are killed every year on our nation’s roads, and the numbers are especially troubling for pedestrians and cyclists.
He and his fellow cyclists have had enough. Earlier this month, a group of about 30 cyclists rolled up to JFK “Love” Plaza in downtown Philadelphia for a rally just prior to the city council’s first Fall session.
They chanted, “City council. Concrete now!”— calling for better protection for cyclists and pedestrians, after three people were killed in just a few weeks this summer.
Among those killed, Dr. Barbara Friedes, a beloved pediatric cancer doctor at Philadelphia Children’s Hospital, who was run down by a speeding driver in a bike lane.
