FHWA-SA-16-044

Safety Performance Measures

Fact Sheet

Safety Performance Measures

Number of Fatalities: The total number of persons suffering fatal injuries in 

a motor vehicle crash during a calendar year.

Rate of Fatalities: The ratio of total number of fatalities to the number of 

vehicle miles traveled (VMT, in 100 Million VMT) in a calendar year.

Number of Serious Injuries: The total number of persons suffering at least 

one serious injury in a motor vehicle crash during a calendar year.

Rate of Serious Injuries: The ratio of total number of serious injuries to the 

number of VMT (in 100 Million VMT) in a calendar year. 

Number of Non-motorized Fatalities and Non-motorized Serious Injuries:

The combined total number of non-motorized fatalities and non-motorized 

serious injuries involving a motor vehicle during a calendar year. 

Data Sources

Fatality Data: Fatality Analysis 

Reporting System (FARS). Final FARS

data is to be used if it is available, 

otherwise FARS Annual Report File 

(ARF) data may be used, which is 

generally available one year before 

Final FARS data. 

Volume Data: State VMT data is

derived from the Highway 

Performance Monitoring System 

(HPMS). Metropolitan Planning 

Organization (MPO) VMT, if 

applicable, is estimated by the MPO.

Serious Injury Data: State motor 

vehicle crash database. Agencies must 

use the definition for “Suspected 

Serious Injury (A)” from the MMUCC, 

4th edition by April 15, 2019. Prior to 

April 15, 2019 agencies may use 

injuries classified as “A” on the KABCO 

scale through use of serious injury 

conversion tables. However, agencies 

are encouraged to begin using the 

MMUCC, 4th edition definition and

attributes at the beginning of 2019 for 

a complete and consistent data file for 

the calendar year. 

Number of Non-motorized Fatalities 

and Non-motorized Serious Injuries:

FARS and State motor vehicle crash 

database. The number of non-motorized 

fatalities is the total number of fatalities 

with the FARS person attribute codes: 

(5) Pedestrian, (6) Bicyclist, (7) Other 

Cyclist, and (8) Person on Personal 

Conveyance. The number of nonmotorized serious injuries is the total 

number of serious injuries where the 

injured person is, or is equivalent to, a 

pedestrian (2.2.36) or a pedalcyclist 

(2.2.39) as defined in ANSI D16.1-2007.

What You Need to Know About Establishing Targets 

States:

• States will first establish statewide targets in their August 31, 2017 HSIP Annual Report for calendar year 2018, and annually 

thereafter.

• Targets are applicable to all public roads regardless of functional classification or ownership. 

• For common performance measures (number of fatalities, rate of fatalities and number of serious injuries), targets must be 

identical to the targets established for the NHTSA Highway Safety Grants program in the Highway Safety Plan. 

• States also have the option to establish any number of urbanized area targets and one non-urbanized area target for any or all of 

the measures. If a State chooses to do so, it is required to report the urbanized area boundaries used and evaluate and report 

progress for each target. Urbanized and non-urbanized area targets are not included in the significant progress determination.

Coordination and Collaboration: • Performance management connects the Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP) and Highway Safety Plan (HSP) to the 

Strategic Highway Safety Plan (SHSP) to promote a coordinated relationship for common performance measures, resulting in 

comprehensive transportation and safety planning. 

• The State DOT and MPOs in the State must coordinate when establishing targets, to the maximum extent practicable.

• A wide range of stakeholders should work together to establish targets. This includes, the State DOT, State Highway Safety Office, 

MPOs, FHWA Division Office, NHTSA Regional Office, Law Enforcement Agencies and EMS (include all 4 E’s of Highway Safety)

• Set targets that are data-driven and realistic, maintain momentum and remain focused. 

Five Performance Measures

 Number of Fatalities 

 Rate of Fatalities per 100 Million VMT

 Number of Serious Injuries

 Rate of Serious Injuries per 100 

Million VMT

 Number of Non-motorized Fatalities 

and Non-motorized Serious Injuries
FHWA-SA-16-044

What You Need to Know About

Establishing Targets (continued)

MPOs:

• MPOs must establish targets specific to the MPO planning area for the same five safety performance measures for all public roads 

in the MPO planning area within 180 days after the State establishes each target. MPOs may select one of the following options for 

each individual safety performance measure:

• agreeing to support the State target; OR

• establishing specific numeric targets for a safety performance measure (number or rate).

• MPOs that choose to establish a rate target must report the VMT estimate used to establish that target and the methodology to 

develop the VMT estimate. MPOs should make maximum use of data prepared for HPMS when preparing the rate-based target 

denominator. If an MPO develops data specifically for the denominator, it should use methods to compute VMT that are consistent 

with those used for other Federal reporting purposes.

• MPO targets are reported to the State DOT, and made available to FHWA, upon request. MPO targets are not included in the 

assessment of whether a State has met or made significant progress toward meeting its targets.

Performance Measure

State Target MPO Target

For Each Performance Measure, 

Support State Target or Establish 

MPO-Specific Target 

Target Reported in HSIP 

Annual Report for FHWA

Target Reported in Highway 

Safety Plan for NHTSA

Number of Fatalities  =  

Rate of Fatalities per 100 Million VMT  =  

Number of Serious Injuries  =  

Rate of Serious Injuries per 100 Million VMT  Not required 

Number of Non-motorized Fatalities and 

Non-motorized Serious Injuries  Not required 

Example Target Calculations

5-Year Rolling Average: Each target is based on a 5-year rolling average, which is the average of 5 individual, consecutive points of data. 

The 5-year rolling average provides a better understanding of the overall data over time without eliminating years with significant

increases or decreases; and provides a mechanism for accounting for regression to the mean. If a particularly high or low number of 

fatalities and/or serious injuries occur in one year, a return to a level consistent with the average in the previous year may occur.

The number targets are calculated by adding the number for the measure for each of the most recent 5 consecutive years ending in the 

year for which the targets are established, dividing by 5, and rounding to the tenth decimal place. The rate targets are calculated 

similarly yet rounded to the thousandth decimal place. This more accurately reveals the change from one 5-year average to another 

that might otherwise be obscured if the number was truncated.

Example: Number of Fatalities

Year 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015

Number of Fatalities 471 468 493 468 462*

*From FARS Annual Report File, if Final FARS is not available

To determine the target for number of fatalities:

• Add the number of fatalities for the most recent 5 

consecutive calendar years ending in the year for which the 

targets are established: 471 + 468 + 493 + 468 + 462 = 2,362

• Divide by five and round to the nearest tenth decimal place: 

2,362 / 5 = 472.4

Example: Rate of Fatalities per 100 Million VMT

Year 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015

Number of Fatalities 471 468 493 468 462*

Per 100 Million VMT 454.21 487.50 466.48 492.27 495.97

Rate of Fatalities 1.04 0.96 1.06 0.95 0.93

*From FARS Annual Report File, if Final FARS is not available

To determine the target for rate of fatalities:

• Add the rate of fatalities for the most recent 5 consecutive 

calendar years ending in the year for which the targets are 

established: 1.04 + 0.96 + 1.06 + 0.95 + 0.93 = 4.94

• Divide by five and round to the nearest thousandth decimal 

place: 4.94 / 5 = 0.988