injured.org

The Count

We Recounted Every U.S. Traffic Death Since 2000

965,674

People killed on America's roads. Counted from the raw records, not from summaries.

Before we cite a number, we rebuild it ourselves from the federal crash files. You can do the same. Every figure on this site links to its source, its years, and its method. Check any of them.

From federal fatal-crash records, 2000-2024 · Checked July 2026

The Proof

Fatal crashes, 2000-2024

880,999

84,675 fewer than the death count above.

880,999 fatal crashes produced 965,674 deaths since 2000, a gap of 84,675 that exists because one crash can take more than one life.

From federal fatal-crash records, 2000-2024

How We Checked Our Own Number

965,674 people have died on U.S. roads since 2000. Our record counts every one. Those same 25 years also hold 880,999 separate fatal crashes. That's 84,675 fewer than the death count. One crash can take more than one life. That is why we count crashes and deaths as two different numbers, not one.

The Map

We start with pedestrians because their death rate is the one that has gotten worse, not better, across the full record.

Where a walk is most likely to turn deadly

Alabama: 2.48 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Alaska: 2.03 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Arizona: 3.30 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Arkansas: 2.23 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents California: 2.76 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Colorado: 1.88 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Connecticut: 1.66 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Delaware: 2.66 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Florida: 2.86 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Georgia: 2.56 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Hawaii: 2.42 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Idaho: 0.70 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Illinois: 1.68 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Indiana: 1.50 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Iowa: 0.93 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Kansas: 1.14 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Kentucky: 2.07 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Louisiana: 3.46 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Maine: 0.93 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Maryland: 2.43 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Massachusetts: 1.06 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Michigan: 1.48 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Minnesota: 0.98 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Mississippi: 3.53 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Missouri: 2.19 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Montana: 0.88 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Nebraska: 0.95 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Nevada: 3.31 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents New Hampshire: 0.71 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents New Jersey: 2.21 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents New Mexico: 4.22 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents New York: 1.45 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents North Carolina: 2.39 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents North Dakota: 0.63 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Ohio: 1.03 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Oklahoma: 1.88 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Oregon: 2.25 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Pennsylvania: 1.32 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Rhode Island: 1.17 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents South Carolina: 2.85 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents South Dakota: 0.97 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Tennessee: 2.19 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Texas: 2.44 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Utah: 1.20 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Vermont: 0.93 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Virginia: 1.40 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Washington: 1.91 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents West Virginia: 1.41 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Wisconsin: 0.97 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents Wyoming: 0.68 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents District of Columbia: 2.56 Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents
Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents
From federal fatal-crash records, 2024. Every figure on this map also exists as a real table on this page, never only inside the map.

Every state's pedestrian numbers, ranked →

The Findings

The Age Band Crashes Hit Hardest

Crashes killed 103,168 people age 16 to 20. That is the count from 2000 through 2024. They were among 271,079 people that age in those crashes. Drivers and passengers age 21 to 24 add 92,735 more deaths. Those deaths came from 216,044 people. No age group under 25 loses more people to crashes than these two combined. That is the highest crash death count of any age group under 25 in the 25-year record.

If a teen or young adult driver lives in your home, this is the age window that matters most in the data. More on how these crashes happen →

103,168

Deaths, drivers/passengers age 16-20

92,735

Deaths, drivers/passengers age 21-24

From federal fatal-crash records, 2000-2024

69%

Deaths after dark

23%

In daylight

Pedestrians: The Road Users Who Never Got Safer

Age tells you who's hurt most. This finding is about whose risk is getting worse, not better.

Pedestrian deaths rose 59% from 2000 to their 2022 peak. They went from 4,763 to 7,593. Other kinds of traffic deaths held closer to flat over parts of that span. Our record counts 136,509 people killed while walking since 2000. 69% of those deaths happened after dark. That is more than double the 23% that happened in daylight.

How pedestrian crashes happen → · Every state's pedestrian numbers, ranked →

From federal fatal-crash records, 2000-2024

Motorcycles: The Third Most Common Vehicle in a Fatal Crash

That finding was about people and their risk over time. This one is about the vehicle they were in.

Motorcycles are the third most common type of vehicle in a fatal U.S. crash. Our record counts 115,475 motorcycles in fatal crashes since 2000. Only two vehicle types appear more often. That's a count of vehicles in fatal crashes, not a count of riders killed.

  • Four-door sedans 375,829
  • Compact SUVs 154,286
  • Motorcycles 115,475
  • Standard pickups 113,260
  • Two-door coupes 81,842

More on motorcycle-crash risk → · Every state's motorcycle numbers, ranked →

From federal fatal-crash records, 2000-2024

5,442

Deaths, large-truck crashes, 2024

From federal fatal-crash records, 2024

Commercial Trucks: The Vehicle That Kills Everyone but Its Driver

Vehicles matter beyond who's riding them. This is the vehicle that hurts everyone around it more than the people inside.

5,442 people died in U.S. crashes involving a large truck in 2024. From 2020 through 2024 combined, 28,029 people died in these crashes. The record counts every person killed. That means people in the truck, people in other vehicles, and people on foot. Not truck drivers alone. Most of that toll falls on the people in the other vehicle.

Texas had the most deaths in large-truck crashes in 2024, with 723. New Mexico had the highest rate for its population. It lost 4.13 people for every 100,000 residents. The state with the most deaths and the state with the highest rate are two different states.

More on large-truck crash risk → · Every state's truck numbers, ranked →

Drunk Driving: A Quarter-Century of the Cause We Can Name

Every finding so far has described a pattern. This one names a cause.

Alcohol-involved crashes killed 13,050 people nationwide in 2000. In 2024 they killed 9,979. That is a 23.5% drop over 25 years, even as the U.S. population grew. It still adds up to about 10,000 deaths every year, from one cause we can name. These records count any crash where a drinking driver was there. That driver wasn't always the one found at fault.

How we define an alcohol-involved crash →

Alcohol-involved deaths, 2000

13,050

Alcohol-involved deaths, 2024

9,979

Change, 2000 to 2024

-23.5%

I-10 Is the Deadliest Named Interstate in the Country

A cause explains why crashes happen. This finding shows exactly where.

I-10 is the single deadliest named interstate in our national crash record. It saw 8,053 fatal crashes and 9,398 deaths since 2000. I-95 is next, with 6,537 crashes and 7,494 deaths. Then I-40, with 4,980 crashes and 5,871 deaths. I-10 crosses eight states. Texas and Arizona account for the largest shares of its toll.

More on how these crashes happen →

Interstate Deaths Fatal crashes
I-10 9,398 8,053
I-95 7,494 6,537
I-40 5,871 4,980

From federal fatal-crash records, 2000-2024

The Rankings

The States With the Deadliest Roads, Adjusted for Population

Mississippi has the nation's highest rate of traffic deaths. It lost 25.59 people for every 100,000 residents in 2024. That is about 1 death for every 3,900 residents. Texas has the most raw deaths of any state, 4,160 in 2024. But it ranks lower once you adjust for population. The leader changes by category. New Mexico tops the rate rankings for people killed walking and for large-truck crashes. Wyoming leads for motorcyclists. Louisiana leads for bicyclists.

Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents, top 5 states, 2024

From federal fatal-crash records, 2024 injured.org

All crashes, highest rate

Mississippi

25.59 per 100,000 residents, 2024

Pedestrians, highest rate

New Mexico

4.22 per 100,000 residents, 2024

Motorcyclists, highest rate

Wyoming

4.08 per 100,000 residents, 2024

Large trucks, highest rate

New Mexico

4.13 per 100,000 residents, 2024

Bicyclists, highest rate

Louisiana

0.96 per 100,000 residents, 2024

Pedestrian deaths per 100,000 residents, top 10 states, 2024
Rank State Deaths, 2024 Per 100,000 residents
1 New Mexico 90 4.22
2 Mississippi 104 3.53
3 Louisiana 159 3.46
4 Nevada 108 3.31
5 Arizona 250 3.30
6 Florida 668 2.86
7 South Carolina 156 2.85
8 California 1,090 2.76
9 Delaware 28 2.66
10 Georgia 286 2.56

Scroll to see all rows on small screens.

State by State

The Data, State by State

Every state has its own page, built from the same national crash record as the numbers above. Each one shows the state's rank in every category we track, not just its single strongest number.

See the full record for

51 pages · one national crash record · same methodology

Browse all states A–Z →

Keep Reading

See all studies →

Methodology

We pulled this from federal fatal-crash records, 2000-2024. Read the full methodology →

Checked July 2026