SAFETY FACTS

Approximately 70% of all children killed or injured by motor vehicles are struck within blocks from their own homes.

Speeding is the most common traffic rule violation and contributes to motor vehicle accidents every single day.


Children:

• Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for ages 3 to 14 (based on 2007 figures, which are the latest mortality data currently available from the National Center for Health Statistics). 

• An average of 4 children age 14 and younger were killed and 500 were injured every day in the United States in motor vehicle crashes during 2009. 

• Seventy-four percent of the pedestrian fatalities among the 14-and-younger age group occurred at non-intersection locations. 

• During 2009, there were a total of 33,808 traffic fatalities in the United States. The 14-and-younger age group accounted for 1,314 of those traffic fatalities


Alcohol-Impaired Driving Crashes and Children: 

• In 2009, of the 1,314 children age 14 and younger killed, 181 (14%) were killed in alcohol-impaired driving crashes. 

• Another 27 children age 14 and younger who were killed in traffic crashes in 2009 were pedestrians or pedal cyclists who were struck by drivers with a BAC of .08 or higher.


School Transportation Related Crashes: 

A school transportation-related crash is a crash which involves, either directly or indirectly, a school bus vehicle, or a non-school bus functioning as a school bus, transporting children to or from school or school-related activities.

• An average of 19 school-age children die in school transportation related crashes each year, 5 occupants of school transportation vehicles and 14 pedestrians.


Pedestrians:

A pedestrian is defined as any person not in or upon a motor vehicle or other vehicle. 

• In 2008, 4,378 pedestrians were killed in traffic crashes in the United States. On average, a pedestrian is killed in a traffic crash every 120 minutes and injured in a traffic crash every 8 minutes. There were 69,000 pedestrians injured in traffic crashes in 2008. Most pedestrian fatalities in 2008 occurred in urban areas (72%), at non-intersection locations.


Pedal cyclists: 

Pedal cyclists are riders of bicycles (two-wheel non-motorized cycles) and other cycles (tricycles and unicycles) powered solely by pedals. 

• A total of 630 pedal cyclists were killed in motor vehicle crashes in 2009. The 14-and-younger age group accounted for 12% (74) of those fatalities. 

• In 2009, an estimated 51,000 pedal cyclists were injured in motor vehicle traffic crashes. Seventeen percent (or an estimated 8,000) of the pedal cyclists who were injured were age 14 and younger.


Distracted Driving:

• In 2008, almost 20 percent of all crashes in the year involved some type of distraction. (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration - NHTSA)

• Nearly 6,000 people died in 2008 in crashes involving a distracted driver, and more than half a million were injured. (NHTSA) 

• The younger, inexperienced drivers under 20 years old have the highest proportion of distraction-related fatal crashes.

• Drivers who use hand-held devices are four times as likely to get into crashes serious enough to injure themselves. (Source: Insurance Institute for Highway Safety)

• Using a cell phone use while driving, whether it’s hand-held or hands-free, delays a driver's reactions as much as having a blood alcohol concentration at the legal limit of .08 percent. (Source: University of Utah)