In 44 percent of these crashes, both vehicles were proceeding straight at the time of the collision. In 28 percent the older drivers was turning left - 9 times as often as the younger driver. On a per population basis, drivers under the age of 25 had the highest rate of involvement in fatal crashes among all age groups. The intoxication rate for 16-20 year old drivers in fatal crashes in 1994 was 14.1 percent. The male fatal crash involvement rate per 100,000 population was 3 times as high as for female drivers in 1994.
Female drivers continue to exhibit safer driving statistics than male drivers.
22 percent of male drivers involved in fatal crashes were intoxicated compared to 11 percent of female drivers. 37 percent of female drivers involved in fatal crashes were unrestrained at the time of the crash compared to 47 percent for male drivers involved in fatal crashes. In 1994, there were 5,472 pedestrian fatalities which represented 13 percent of total fatalities. On average, a pedestrian is killed in a motor vehicle crash every 96 minutes. More than one-third of children between 5 and 9 years old killed in motor vehicle crashes were pedestrians.