New report calls rise in traffic deaths a 'public health epidemic'

WASHINGTON, D.C. — A caller study connected the information of the country's roads is retired and it's not great.

It shows that astir 100 radical are killed and implicit 7,500 much are injured connected American roadways each day. That's an summation from erstwhile years.

The survey shows that determination was a 20% summation successful postulation deaths successful the archetypal six months of 2021. That's the largest summation ever since the national authorities started tracking, according to Advocates for Highways and Auto Safety, which released the data.

Advocates for Highways and Auto Safety use a green, yellowish and reddish strategy to fertile states. Green states are improving, yellowish states inactive request betterment and reddish states are classified arsenic the worst for safety.

Safety advocates fertile the states based connected causalities and however galore caller information laws person passed, specified arsenic those that restrict texting and driving, promote spot loop usage and bounds erstwhile idiosyncratic tin larn to drive.

The latest study shows fewer green. Most of the state is yellow.

Montana, Arizona, Missouri, Ohio, Florida, Nebraska and Virginia are successful red.

PUSH FOR FEDERAL CHANGES

Most postulation information laws successful the state are typically passed astatine the section and authorities level but erstwhile the caller infrastructure instrumentality passed past
year, Congress gave caller powers to the caput of proscription to instrumentality robust information standards.

For instance, the instrumentality gives Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg the authorization to contented caller rules to automakers successful the coming years regarding clang avoiding technologies, similar automatic braking.

Safety advocates accidental Buttigieg should determination rapidly to enact the rules.

Currently, the exertion is disposable successful vehicles but it often does not travel modular and is simply a costly upgrade.

"This needs to beryllium done arsenic rapidly arsenic possible," said Cathy Chase who is with Advocates for Highways and Auto Safety.

Additionally, information experts privation the national authorities to get much assertive successful requiring spot loop reminders successful the backmost spot owed to the summation successful request for rideshare services similar Uber and Lyft.