According to a preliminary estimate by the National Safety Council, approximately 36,200 motor vehicle fatalities occurred in 2012. This marked a five percent upsurge from 2011 and was the first increase since 2004 to 2005. The NSC also estimated that crash injuries requiring medical attention rose by five percent since 2011 to a total of 3.9 million.
NSC estimated the cost of motor vehicle deaths, injuries, and property damage in 2012 was $276.6 billion, a five percent increase from 2011.
Total miles driven across the nation have been on the rise since December 2011, which may be a contributor to the increase in fatalities, according to the NSC. The NSC also speculated that some of the increase in miles driven may be due to an improving economy and the mild 2012 winter across much of the country.
“NSC is greatly concerned with the upswing in traffic fatalities on our nation's roads,” said Janet Froetscher, president and CEO of the National Safety Council. “Although we have improved safety features in vehicles today, we also have new challenges, especially as it relates to teen and distracted driving, that need to be addressed on a national scale. We must work together now to reverse this latest trend to prevent needless tragedy.”
Victoria Spears
Victoria Prussen Spears is senior vice president of Meyerowitz Communications Inc., a law firm marketing communications consulting company. A graduate of Sarah Lawrence College and Brooklyn Law School, Ms. Spears was an attorney at a leading New York City law firm before joining Meyerowitz Communications. She may be contacted at [email protected].