WI Traffic Deaths Remained Above Pre-Pandemic Levels, Estimates Show

WISCONSIN — There have been barely fewer site visitors deaths on Wisconsin’s roads in 2021 in comparison with 2020, in keeping with the newest estimates from federal freeway security officers. However the federal estimate of 597 nonetheless charts larger than the common state officers recorded for 2015-2019, which was 573.

In 2021, site visitors fatalities hit a 16-year excessive in practically each state. Greater than 42,900 individuals are estimated to have misplaced their lives on America’s highways final yr, up from an estimated 38,824 in 2020 — a ten.5 % improve. It is the most important year-over-year improve from the Nationwide Freeway Visitors Security Administration studies, the company mentioned in an announcement on its web site.

The NHTSA estimates put Wisconsin as an outlier from the remainder of the nation, although. Visitors fatalities are estimated to have gone down by 2.8 % from 2020 to 2021 within the Badger State.

The estimated discount in deaths comes as native officers in Milwaukee are coping with an obvious rash of reckless driving, and 2022 has began off on a deadlier path than 2021, in keeping with preliminary information from the Wisconsin Division of Transportation

WisDOT marked 179 deaths in 2022 between January and Could 15. The identical timeframe in 2021 confirmed 162 deaths.

The 2021 federal site visitors fatality estimates present roads have gotten extra lethal throughout the nation. The world with the very best projected improve in site visitors fatalities — 19 %, virtually double the nationwide common — is the five-state area of Alaska, Washington, Oregon, Idaho and Montana.

Compared, the five-state area within the nation’s midsection — Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas, Kansas and Nebraska — is estimated to see a 3 % improve in fatalities.

Within the five-state area that features Wisconsin, Minnesota, Illinois, Michigan, Indiana and Ohio, freeway site visitors deaths in 2021 are projected to extend by 9 % over 2020.

The projected improve comes on high of a document 38,824 site visitors fatalities in 2020, on the time the very best variety of fatalities since 2007.

Freeway security consultants questioned on the time if harmful driving throughout the pandemic — together with driving at speeds exceeding 200 mph on highways absent the traditional site visitors a great deal of folks commuting to and from work and going about their lives — was a blip or a long-term sample.

The freeway security company mentioned the elevated fatality price per 100 million miles continued within the first quarter of 2021 however decreased within the second, third and fourth quarters.
Nonetheless, roads had been solely reasonably safer by that measure.

Motorists drove about 11.2 % extra miles in 2021 than in 2020, or 325.2 billion miles extra, as staff returned to the workplace and companies reopened. The fatality price per 100 million miles pushed remained virtually unchanged, although, right down to an estimated 1.33 fatalities in 2021 from 1.34 fatalities per million miles the yr prior.

Another nationwide estimates from the report:

• Fatalities in multi-vehicle crashes had been up 16 %.
• Fatalities on city roads had been up 16 %.
• Fatalities amongst drivers 65 and older had been up 14 %.
• Pedestrian fatalities had been up 13 %.
• Fatalities in crashes involving a minimum of one massive truck had been up 13 %.
• Daytime fatalities had been up 11 %.
• Motorcyclist fatalities had been up 9 %.
• Bicyclist fatalities had been up 5 %.
• Fatalities in speeding-related crashes had been up 5 %.
• Fatalities in police-reported, alcohol-involved crashes had been up 5 %.