Traffic fatalities dropped 3 percent in 2010; the lowest it has been since 1949 despite an increase in the number of miles Americans drove last year.
Since 2005, fatalities have dropped 25 percent, from a total of 43,510 fatalities in 2005, according to the Department of Transportation.
The decline corresponds to the slow recovery of the national economy and that people drove less during the recession, reported USA Today.
Public awareness campaigns, safer road design, and improved vehicle safety are other reasons for the decrease in fatalities, Barbara Harsha, director of the Governors Highway Safety Assn., told the Los Angeles Times. The Governors Highway Safety Assn. is a non-profit organization that represents state highway safety offices.
Roy Lucke, director of research at Northwestern University's Center for Public Safety said that a change in the attitude of the American people also led to the decline, reported the Los Angeles Times. However, distracted driving is on the rise, Lucke said, as people continue to text and call while in the driver's seat.
