The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has released fatal traffic crash data for the calendar year 2016.

According to the data, collected from all 50 states and the District of Columbia, a total of 37,461 lives were lost on U.S. roads in 2016, an increase of 5.6% from the previous year. The data also reveals that the number of vehicle miles traveled (VMT) on U.S. roads increased by 2.2% percent, and resulted in a fatality rate of 1.18 deaths per 100 million VMT – a 2.6% increase from 2015.

Distracted driving and drowsy driving fatalities declined in 2016, while deaths related to other reckless behaviors – including speeding, alcohol impairment, and not wearing seat belts – continued to increase, the data reveals.

Key findings include:

  • Distraction-related deaths (3,450 fatalities) decreased by 2.2%
  • Drowsy-driving deaths (803 fatalities) decreased by 3.5%
  • Drunk-driving deaths (10,497 fatalities) increased by 1.7%
  • Speeding-related deaths (10,111 fatalities) increased by 4.0%
  • Unbelted deaths (10,428 fatalities) increased by 4.6%
  • Motorcyclist deaths (5,286 fatalities – the largest number of motorcyclist fatalities since 2008) increased by 5.1%
  • Pedestrian deaths (5,987 fatalities – the highest number since 1990) increased by 9.0%
  • Bicyclist deaths (840 fatalities – the highest number since 1991) increased by 1.3%

Click here to view 2016 Fatal Motor Vehicle Crashes: Overview

Click here to view 2016 Quick Facts