Annual Global Road Crash Statistics
Almost 1.25 million people die in road crashes each year. That's 3287 people per day.
Additionally, 20-50 more are injured.
More than half of all road traffic deaths occur among young adults ages 15-44.
Vehicle crashes rank as the 9th leading cause of death and account for 2.2% of all deaths globally.
Vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death among young people ages 15-29, and the second leading cause of death worldwide among young people ages 5-14.
Each year nearly 400,000 people under 25 die on the world’s roads, on average over 1,000 a day.
Over 90% of all road fatalities occur in low and middle-income countries, which have less than half of the world’s vehicles.
Road crashes cost $518 billion (USD) globally, costing individual countries from 1-2% of their annual GDP.
Road crashes cost low and middle-income countries $65 billion (USD) annually, exceeding the total amount received in developmental assistance.
Unless action is taken, road traffic injuries are predicted to become the fifth leading cause of death by 2030.
Annual UNITED STATES Road Crash Statistics
Over 37,000 people die in road crashes each year.
An additional 2.35 million are injured or disabled.
Over 1,600 children under 15 years of age die each year.
Nearly 8,000 people are killed in crashes involving drivers ages 16-20.
Road crashes cost the U.S. $230.6 billion per year, or an average of $820 per person.
Road crashes are the single greatest annual cause of death of healthy U.S. citizens traveling abroad.
Plane Crash Statistics
Causes of Fatal Accidents - The Following Information Was Used:
- Dates From 1/1/950 to 06/30/2019.
- Planes Capable of Carrying More Than 19 People.
- Accidents With at Least Two Fatalities.
- The Military, Private Planes and Helicopters Were Not Included.
| Pilot Error | Mechanical | Weather | Sabotage | Other |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Improper Procedure | Engine Failure | Severe Turbulence | Hijacking | ATC Error |
| Flying VFR Into IFR Conditions | Equipment Failure | Wind Shear | Shot Down | Ground Crew Error |
| Controlled Flight Into Terrain | Structural Failure | Mountain Wave | Explosive Device On Board | Overloaded |
| Descending Below Minimum | Design Flaw | Poor Visibility | Pilot Suicide | Improperly Loaded Cargo |
| Spatial Disorientation | -- | Heavy Rain | -- | Bird Strike |
| Premature Descent | -- | Severe Winds | -- | Fuel Contamination |
| Excessive Landing Speed | -- | Icing | -- | Pilot Incapacitation |
| Missed Runway | -- | ThunderStorms | -- | Obstruction On Runway |
| Fuel Starvation | -- | Lightning Strike | -- | Midair Collision Caused By Other Aircraft |
| Navigation Error | -- | -- | -- | Fire/Smoke In Flight [Cabin,Cockpit,Cargo Hold] |
| Wrong Runway Takeoff/Landing | -- | -- | -- | Maintenance Error |
| Midair Collision Caused By Primary Pilot | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| Decade | 50's | 60's | 70's | 80's | 90's | 2000's | 2010's | ALL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pilot Error | 50% | 53% | 49% | 42% | 49% | 50% | 57% | 49% |
| Mechanical | 26% | 27% | 19% | 22% | 22% | 23% | 21% | 23% |
| Weather | 15% | 7% | 10% | 14% | 7% | 8% | 10% | 10% |
| Sabotage | 4% | 4% | 9% | 12% | 8% | 9% | 8% | 8% |
| Other | 5% | 9% | 13% | 10% | 14% | 10% | 4% | 10% |
| Cause | 50's | 60' | 70's | 80's | 90's | 2000's | 2010's | ALL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pilot Error | 82 | 119 | 112 | 67 | 77 | 48 | 28 | 533 |
| Mechanical | 43 | 62 | 45 | 36 | 35 | 22 | 10 | 253 |
| Weather | 25 | 15 | 22 | 22 | 10 | 8 | 5 | 107 |
| Sabotage | 6 | 9 | 20 | 20 | 13 | 9 | 6 | 81 |
| Other | 9 | 21 | 31 | 16 | 22 | 10 | 2 | 111 |
| TOTALS | 165 | 226 | 230 | 161 | 157 | 97 | 69 | 1085 |
Survival Rate on Aircraft Involved in Fatal Accidents Carrying 19+ Passengers
| Decade | Survival Rate |
|---|---|
| 1940's | 24 |
| 1950's | 25 |
| 1960's | 21 |
| 1970's | 25 |
| 1980's | 36 |
| 1990's | 39 |
| 2000's | 28 |
| 2010's | 27 |
Survival rate of passengers on aircraft ditching in a controlled flight: 42%
Pedestrians and Bicyclists Killed In The U.S.
Summary Statistics:
In 2017 there were 5,977 pedestrians and 783 bicyclists killed in crashes with motor vehicles in the United States. Together, bicyclists and pedestrians account for a growing share of total US traffic fatalities: in 2003, pedestrians and bicyclists represented 12.6 percent of total traffic fatalities, and in 2017 they accounted for 18.2 percent of fatalities.
Pedestrian and bicyclist fatalities increased by 32 percent in the ten-year period between 2008 and 2017. During that same time period, total traffic fatalities decreased by 0.8 percent.
| Year | Number Killed |
|---|---|
| 2008 | 5132 |
| 2009 | 4737 |
| 2010 | 4925 |
| 2011 | 5139 |
| 2012 | 5552 |
| 2013 | 5528 |
| 2014 | 5639 |
| 2015 | 6194 |
| 2016 | 6932 |
| 2017 | 6760 |
Accident Information Charts
| Causes | Number OF Deaths | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Driving Too Fast For Conditions or In Excess of Posted Speed Limit or Racing | 8.856 | 16.9 |
| Under The Influence of Alcohol, Drugs or Medication | 5.507 | 10.5 |
| Failure To Keep In Proper Lane | 3.826 | 7.3 |
| Failure To Yield Right Of Way | 3.711 | 7.1 |
| Distracted [Phone, Talking, Eating, etc..] | 2.994 | 5.7 |
| Operating a Vehicle In a Careless Manner | 2.961 | 5.7 |
| Failure To Obey Traffic Signal, Officer or Signs | 2.095 | 4.0 |
| Operating a Vehicle in a Negligent, Erratic or Reckless Manner | 1.996 | 3.8 |
| Over-correcting or Over-steering | 1.837 | 3.5 |
| Obscured Vision [Rain, Snow, Lights, Trees, etc..] | 1.581 | 3.0 |
| Drowsy, Asleep, Fatigued, Ill or Blacked Out | 1.306 | 2.5 |
| Driving Wrong Way on One-Way Traffic or Wrong Side of Road | 1.187 | 2.3 |
| Swerving or Avoiding Due to Slippery Surface or Wind | 1.103 | 2.1 |
| Making Improper Turn | 498 | 1.0 |
| Other Factors | 6,225 | 11.9 |
| None Reported | 25.7 | 25.7 |
| Unknown | 11,710 | 22.4 |
| TOTAL DRIVERS | 52,274 | 100.0 |
TRAIN ACCIDENT STATISTICS
These statistics include the following:
- Derailment
- Train-Train Collisions
- Train-Car Collisions
- Train-Person Collisions
- Property Damage
Yearly nearly 1,000 people are killed in train related accidents. Additionally, United States train and railroad accident statistics estimate that almost every two weeks a train derailment leads to a chemical spill. Some of these spills are so serious that they require the evacuation of local residents. The occurrence and frequency of train accidents has been escalating since 1997.
Train-Car Collisions
According to the US Department of Transportation, there are about 5,800 train-car crashes each year in the United States, most of which occur at railroad crossings. These accidents cause 600 deaths and injure about 2,300. More than half of all fatal train accidents occur at train crossings that do not have active safety devises or have safety devices that are simply inadequate or, in come cases, have no safety devices to alert unsuspecting motorists. During the day, about 75% of car and train collisions involve the train hitting the car. At night, about 50% of the time, the car runs into the train at an inadequately marked crossing.
Train Accident Facts And Figures:
- About every hour and a half a train collides with an object or is derailed.
- Every two weeks a train that is carrying hazardous materials derails in the United States.
- Today rail companies rely on technology that was developed more than 70 years ago, and very little research and improvement has been made to update these dated safety measures.
- Local governments often have no voice over the train traffic in their area, which can result in delays for local emergency responders.
- According to the DOT’s Federal Railroad Administration, about 80% of railroad crossings do not have adequate warning devices.
- While vehicle on train collisions have decreased in the past few years, pedestrians involved in train collisions have increased.
Rail Incidents At Public and Private Crossings - 1981-2018
Still Preliminary Stats for 2017-2018
| Year | Collisions | Fatalities | Injuries |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1981 | 9461 | 728 | 3293 |
| 1982 | 7932 | 607 | 2637 |
| 1983 | 7305 | 575 | 2623 |
| 1984 | 7456 | 649 | 2910 |
| 1985 | 7073 | 582 | 2687 |
| 1986 | 6513 | 616 | 2458 |
| 1987 | 6426 | 624 | 2429 |
| 1988 | 6617 | 689 | 2589 |
| 1989 | 6526 | 801 | 2868 |
| 1990 | 5715 | 698 | 2407 |
| 1991 | 5388 | 608 | 2094 |
| 1992 | 4910 | 579 | 1975 |
| 1993 | 4892 | 626 | 1837 |
| 1994 | 4979 | 615 | 1961 |
| 1995 | 4633 | 579 | 1894 |
| 1996 | 4257 | 488 | 1610 |
| 1997 | 3865 | 461 | 1540 |
| 1998 | 3508 | 481 | 1303 |
| 1999 | 3489 | 402 | 1396 |
| Year | Collisions | Fatalities | Injuries |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 3502 | 425 | 1219 |
| 2001 | 3237 | 421 | 1157 |
| 2002 | 3077 | 357 | 999 |
| 2003 | 2977 | 334 | 1035 |
| 2004 | 3077 | 372 | 1092 |
| 2005 | 3057 | 359 | 1051 |
| 2006 | 2936 | 369 | 1070 |
| 2007 | 2776 | 339 | 1062 |
| 2008 | 2429 | 290 | 992 |
| 2009 | 1934 | 249 | 743 |
| 2010 | 2051 | 260 | 887 |
| 2011 | 2061 | 250 | 1045 |
| 2012 | 1985 | 230 | 1045 |
| 2013 | 2101 | 232 | 975 |
| 2014 | 2296 | 262 | 871 |
| 2015 | 2080 | 237 | 1047 |
| 2016 | 2049 | 255 | 852 |
| 2017 | 2123 | 271 | 844 |
| 2018 | 3217 | 262 | 840 |
MOTORCYCLE STATISTICS - [2008-2017]
| Year | Fatalities | Injured |
|---|---|---|
| 2008 | 5132 | 96000 |
| 2009 | 4469 | 90000 |
| 2010 | 4518 | 82000 |
| 2011 | 4630 | 81000 |
| 2012 | 4986 | 93000 |
| 2013 | 4692 | 88000 |
| 2014 | 4594 | 92000 |
| 2015 | 5029 | 88000 |
| 2016 | 5337 | 104000 |
| 2017 | 5172 | 89000 |