In 2011, for the third year in a row, motor vehicle traffic crashes were not among the top 10 causes of death in the United States. Motor vehicle crashes were the 12th leading cause of death during 2011 as compared to their rank as the 11th leading cause of death in 2010. When ranked by age, motor vehicle traffic crashes were the number one cause of death in 2011 among people ages 8, 13, 14 and every age 16 through 25. In contrast, motor vehicle traffic crashes were the number one leading cause of death for people ages 13 through 25 in 2010. This continued drop in the rank of motor vehicle traffic crashes as a leading cause of death is attributed to a significant (25%) decline in motor vehicle traffic fatalities over the period 2005 to 2011. Nevertheless, despite this drop, motor vehicle traffic crashes continue to be among the top 10 leading causes of death among the younger age groups. Assessing by another measure–the years of life lost, i.e., the number of years people would have lived had they not died, motor vehicle traffic crashes ranked 7th in 2011 as compared to 6th in 2010. This reflects the toll of motor vehicle traffic crashes on the younger population. (Author/publisher)
Abstract