Traffic Deaths Decline Slightly, but Remain Higher Than Before the Pandemic

America’s traffic safety crisis stretched through a fourth year in 2023, with only modest signs of slowing, according to newly released data. Road deaths decreased by 4% last year, compared to 2022, according to preliminary data from the National Safety Council. If the numbers hold, it would be the third year in a row that traffic fatalities declined. But the total of 44,450 lives lost would still be higher than in 2020—when skyrocketing traffic deaths during COVID-19 lockdowns alarmed safety experts—or any pre-pandemic year since 2006.

Traffic Deaths Decline Slightly, but Remain Higher Than Before the Pandemic

Story by Daniel C. Vock
February 28, 2024