Abstract
Since 1906, in the United States, the under-1-year and 15- to 24-year age groups have had an increasing number of deaths due to motor vehicle accident. The death rates for most other age groups have been declining since the late 1920's and 1930's. This decrease has been most marked for the elderly. The trends suggest that the 1960 cohort will experience its lowest death rates at ages 5 to 14 and its peak rates at ages 15 to 24. They also suggest several hypotheses, such as associations of mortality with inexperience and insufficient concern for self-preservation, that may have direct significance to prevention of deaths.