From 2010 to 2019, the number of serious injuries and traffic fatalities in the state of Nevada declined, then remained stable, roughly in line with national trends. So-called ‘multiple airbags’ were standard in almost all new vehicles, regardless of price, and safety cameras and lane-departure and blind-spot sensors were cheaper to produce. The enhanced technology meant that drivers not only had greater peripheral awareness but were also more likely to survive crashes that might have killed the occupant of an older vehicle.

A few weeks ago, The New York Times published an extensive report on the sharp increase in traffic fatalities in the United States. And that’s because, in 2020, as COVID-19 rocked the country, law enforcement and road workers began reporting a large increase in traffic-related injuries, despite the lockdowns and relative emptiness of the roads. In 2021, the state recorded 385 fatalities, the highest in the last 15 years. The following year was not much better, with 382 fatalities and a 114% increase in the number of cyclists killed on the road.

The cause was fairly easy to identify: the data analysed showed that drivers were speeding, on highways and streets, and driving through intersections with alarming frequency. In addition, the use of seatbelts was reduced, causing thousands of injuries to drivers and passengers. After a decade of steady decline, drunk driving arrests had rebounded to record highs.

From 2020 to 2021, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimated that the number of accidents in the United States jumped 16% to more than six million, or approximately 16,500 accidents per day. The fatality figures were somehow even worse: in 2021, 42,939 Americans died in car crashes, the highest number in a decade and a half. Of these fatalities, a significant portion involved drunk or drugged drivers travelling well above the speed limits.

In addition, 43% of the 4.2 million miles of roads are in poor or mediocre condition, according to the American Society of Civil Engineers. And they are unlikely to be repaired anytime soon, given the backlog of approximately $786 billion worth of infrastructure construction.

But, above all, the problem seems to be the drivers: it is no exaggeration to say that road behaviour today is the worst it has ever been, as stated by Captain Michael Brown, commander of the state police district in Michigan.

In 2021, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration estimated that approximately one-quarter of all fatal crashes in the United States involved vehicles travelling above the allowable speed limit, and a significant percentage of those killed, whether passengers or drivers, were not wearing seatbelts. According to the trends detected, national rates of alcohol-impaired driving have increased to the point that one in ten arrests is now related and aggressive driving, defined as racing, erratic lane changes or illegal passing, accounts for 56% of fatal crashes.

Unfortunately, this statistic does not cover the tens of thousands of people injured, often critically, by aggressive drivers, nor the 550 people killed by a gunshot annually after or during road rage incidents, nor the growing number of pedestrians and bicyclists deliberately attacked by outraged motorists.

Add bad driving behaviour, with the dangers of smartphone distraction responsible, at a conservative estimate, for some 3,500 deaths a year, and the combination is devastating.

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