The American Road & Transportation Builders Association
Scope
Progress has been made over the past 25 years to reduce
the highway fatality rate from 2.76 fatalities per 100
million vehicle miles traveled in 1982 to 1.41 in 2006.
However, while this improvement is substantial, there
are still some 42,000 deaths every year in the United
States due to motor vehicle crashes. Almost 60 percent
of these fatalities involve vehicles leaving their lane
and crashing and, of these, more than half result from
vehicles leaving the road and overturning or hitting fixed
objects, such as trees or utility poles.
Recognizing the need to address this challenge, national
safety leaders gathered in 1996 to develop a strategic
plan for preventing injuries and saving lives.