FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, July 23, 2025
Contact:
Rocky Moretti (202) 262-0714
Carolyn Bonifas Kelly (703) 801-9212
WEST VIRGINIA TRAFFIC FATALITY RATE IS 3RD HIGHEST IN U.S.; FATAL & SERIOUS TRAFFIC CRASHES IN WEST VIRGINIA RESULTED IN $7.1 BILLION IN ECONOMIC AND QUALITY-OF-LIFE COSTS IN 2024
New national report examines causes of increased traffic fatalities and potential solutions
Click here for the full report, appendix and infographics
Washington, D.C. – U.S. traffic fatalities fell in 2024 for the third straight year, four years after traffic fatalities surged in 2020 and 2021 as the nation grappled with the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, despite the decrease in traffic fatalities over the past three years, traffic fatalities in 2024 remained significantly higher than a decade ago. This is according to a report released today by TRIP, a national transportation research nonprofit. The report, Addressing America’s Traffic Safety Crisis: Examining the Causes of Increasing U.S. Traffic Fatalities and Identifying Solutions to Improve Traffic Safety, documents trends in traffic fatalities from 2014 to 2024 at the national and state levels, examines causes for the increase in traffic fatalities, and prescribes a broad, comprehensive approach to reducing traffic fatalities in the U.S.
The number and rate of U.S. traffic fatalities increased dramatically in 2020 and 2021, as driver behavior and travel patterns changed at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020. However, following the sharp increase during the pandemic, U.S. fatalities have fallen each year from 2022 through 2024. Despite progress in recent years, in the decade from 2014 to 2024, the number of U.S. traffic fatalities is up 20 percent and the fatality rate per 100 million vehicle miles of travel (VMT) increased 11 percent.
West Virginia’s 2024 traffic fatality rate per 100 million VMT (1.61) was the third highest in the U.S. and significantly higher than the national average of 1.2. In West Virginia, from 2021 to 2024, the traffic fatality rate per 100 million VMT decreased eight percent. But, despite recent progress, from 2014 to 2024 the state’s traffic fatality rate increased 13 percent.
The report’s Appendix includes the number of fatalities and the fatality rate per 100 million VMT every state and the District of Columbia for 2014 and 2019-2024.
West Virginia’s Slow Down, Move Over law, which has been in effect since 2003 and is aimed at protecting all those at the roadside, was expanded beginning July 11. The new legislation provides greater protection for all roadside workers, construction and maintenance vehicles, as well as stranded motorists. Under the new law, drivers must now take the same precautions for maintenance vehicles and disabled vehicles displaying warning signals as they do for emergency responders. The law broadens coverage to include any stationary vehicle performing public service on highways as well as disabled vehicles displaying flashers or other warning signals. It requires drivers to slow down, and if safe to do so, move over one lane, away from the disabled vehicle. If drivers cannot change lanes or if the roadway has fewer than four lanes, they are required to reduce their speed.
“With vehicles passing by at high rates of speed, the side of a road is an extremely dangerous place for anyone to be” said Lori Weaver Hawkins, public and government affairs manager, AAA Blue Grass. “As a strong traffic safety advocate, AAA is pleased to see that protection under West Virginia’s Move Over Law is now extended to motorists in disabled vehicles as well as road maintenance vehicles, while continuing to protect all first responders.”
From 2019 to 2023, crashes in U.S. highway work zones resulted in 4,470 fatalities, increasing six percent from 845 in 2019 to 898 in 2023. In West Virginia, highway work zone crashes resulted in 25 traffic fatalities from 2019 to 2023. The report Appendix includes the number of work zone fatalities in each state and nationwide from 2019-2023.
“We applaud the legislature and Governor Morrisey for recognizing that work zones and highway shoulders are some one of the most dangerous places to be,” said Jason Pizatella, CEO of the Contractors Association of West Virginia. “This is someone’s job site and it’s often where they make their primary living. We want these men and women to be able to work and then travel home safely to their families.”
The TRIP report found that nationwide, bicyclist and pedestrian fatalities, which accounted for 21 percent of all U.S. traffic fatalities in 2024, increased 16 percent from 2019 to 2024. From 2019 to 2024, the number of pedestrians killed increased 14 percent (from 6,205 to 7,046) and the number of bicyclists killed increased 31 percent (from 846 to 1,110).
According to the TRIP report, there were 6,228 motorcyclist fatalities in 2024. And while motorcycle travel accounted for just 0.6 percent of annual VMT in the U.S. in 2023, motorcyclists represented 16 percent of all traffic fatalities. The fatality rate per 100 million miles of travel in 2023 for motorcyclists was 29 times higher than for passenger car occupants (31.39 versus 1.10). U.S. motorcyclist fatalities increased by 24 percent from 2019 to 2024, from 5,015 to 6,228. The share of motorcyclist not wearing helmets increased from 17 percent in 2019 to 29 percent in 2021, then dropped to 18 percent in 2023.
Traffic crashes result in a significant economic burden. According to a 2023 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) report, the tangible economic costs of traffic crashes include medical care, lost productivity, legal and court costs, insurance administrative costs, workplace costs, congestion impacts (travel delay, excess fuel consumption and pollution), emergency services, and property damage. NHTSA has also estimated the annual value of the lost quality-of-life cost of traffic crashes causing serious injury or death. The lost quality-of-life costs include the loss of remaining lifespan, extended or lifelong physical impairment, or physical pain.
Based on NHTSA’s traffic crash cost methodology, TRIP estimates that fatal and serious traffic crashes in West Virginia in 2024 caused a total of $7.1 billion in the value of societal harm, which includes $1.8 billion in economic costs and $5.3 billion in quality-of-life costs.
“This report underscores the urgent need for sustained investment and coordinated action to reverse the troubling trend in traffic fatalities,” said Mike Hare, chairman of the board of directors of the American Traffic Safety Services Association (ATSSA). “While recent declines are encouraging, the human and economic toll remains far too high. ATSSA remains committed to working with our partners across all levels of government and industry to help forward safety solutions that save lives.”
In 2011 U.S. traffic fatalities dropped to 32,749, the lowest level since 1949 when there were 30,246 traffic fatalities. By 2018, U.S. traffic fatalities had increased to 36,835. Beginning in March 2020, when initial restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic were implemented, the number and rate of traffic fatalities began to increase, even as the rate of vehicle travel decreased dramatically.
The significant increase in traffic fatalities since the onset of the pandemic appears largely related to increased risks being taken by drivers. In an October 2021 report, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration found that “after the declaration of the public health emergency in March 2020, driving patterns and behaviors in the United States changed significantly. Of the drivers who remained on the roads, some engaged in riskier behavior, including speeding, failure to wear seat belts, and driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs.”
Data from NHTSA indicates the number of people killed in police-reported alcohol involved crashes increased 22 percent from 2019 to 2023. The number of passenger vehicle occupants not wearing seatbelts who were killed increased four percent from 2019 to 2024. The share of adult front-seat passengers wearing seat belts in 2024 was 91 percent (91.2), an increase from 90.7 percent in 2019 but lower than the rate in 2023 – 91.9 percent, which is the highest rate yet recorded.
NHTSA data also found that the number of people killed in speeding-related traffic crashes climbed 16 percent from 2019 to 2024, and represented 28 percent of U.S. traffic fatalities in 2024. From 2019 to 2023, the number of fatalities in distraction affected traffic crashes increased by five percent, from 3,119 to 3,275.
“State departments of transportation across the country are encouraged to see progress in driving down roadway fatalities, but we still have so far to go,” said Jim Tymon, executive director of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO). “While safety has always been the top priority for state DOTs, AASHTO members continue to look for ways to make impactful changes. State DOTs are focusing on ‘centering safety,’ or ensuring safety is at the center of every action they take. As we look to the next federal surface transportation reauthorization, we see an opportunity to make robust investments in our transportation networks and build on the successes we have seen the last few years in reducing the number of roadway fatalities.”
Increasing investment in roadway safety improvements is likely to pay off in the form of reduced fatal and serious traffic crashes. The U.S. has a $146 billion backlog in needed roadway safety improvements, according to a 2017 report from the AAAFTS. The report found implementing cost-effective and needed roadway safety improvements on U.S. roadways would save approximately 63,700 lives and reduce the number of serious injuries as a result of traffic crashes by approximately 350,000 over a 20-year period.
Additional funding for improved roadway safety has been provided by the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), which was signed into law in November 2021, and provides a significant boost in federal investment in roads, bridges and transit, and offers an opportunity for the nation to make progress in improving the safety, reliability and condition of America’s transportation system. The IIJA provides $454 billion over the five-year period from 2022 to 2026 for investment in highways and transit, resulting in a 38 percent increase in federal investment starting in 2022. The IIJA is set to expire on September 30, 2026.
“While it is good news that the number of traffic fatalities is trending downward in recent years, the sharp increase in traffic fatalities over the past decade must be addressed,” said Dave Kearby, TRIP’s executive director. “Making a commitment to eliminating fatal and serious injuries on the nation’s roadways will require robust investment and coordinated activities by transportation and safety-related agencies in providing the needed layers of protection for the nation’s motorists, pedestrians and bicyclists, including safe road users, safe roads, safe vehicles, safe speeds and high-quality post-crash care.”