According to the California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS), there was an approximate increase of 7.6% in traffic fatalities, rising from 3,980 in 2020 compared to 4,285 in 2021. The Mileage Death Rate (MDR) for 2021, which represents the number of fatalities per 100 million miles traveled, is 1.38. (OTS.) https://www.ots.ca.gov/ots-and-traffic-safety/score-card/ Alcohol deaths: 1,370
Drugs: 52.9% of all drivers killed in motor vehicle crashes tested positive for drugs like marijuana, cocaine, or doctor’s prescription
Failure to wear a seatbelt: 878
Motorcyclists: 565. Rider fatalities increased by 3% from 549 in 2020 to 565 in 2021, with deaths connected with lack of a helmet increased by 9% from 34 in 2020 to a whopping 37 in 2021.
Teens: 474. Teen driver-connected fatal crashes (age 15-20) increased 14.8% from 413 in 2020 to a whopping 474 in 2021
Pedestrians: 1,108. Pedestrian fatalities rose 9.4% from 1,013 in 2020 to 1,108 in 2021
Bicycles: 125. Bicyclist fatalities fell by 8% from 136 in 2020 to 125 in 2021. (Source: Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System (SWITRS); Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS).)