Since 1966, the fatality rate per 100 million vehicle miles travelled has fallen from 5.5 to 1.5. That means that a person's risk of being killed in an automobile accident is now less than one-third of what it was 34 years ago. In that year there were 50,894 traffic fatalities. The U.S. Department of Transportation faithfully reports these figures each year, but they seem to get little attention in the press. The last of these is particularly important.
Surveys indicate that more than two-thirds of drivers and passengers use seat belts.
Research on automotive safety is continuing and with it will come technological gains and even fewer fatalities. The links below include sources for traffic safety statistics, as well as automotive safety research, and safety advocacy organizations. See the box at the bottom of the page for interesting infomation on safety by state, type of vehicle, gender, age, etc. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety - Highway Loss Data Institute . Contains a wealth of information on automotive safety, including vehicle ratings , driver death rates by make and model of car, etc.