State by state | 2007

2007
All Fatality Facts topics

The number and type of motor vehicle crash deaths differ widely among the 50 states and the District of Columbia. A state's population has an obvious effect on the number of motor vehicle deaths. Fatality rates per capita provide a way of examining motor vehicle deaths relative to a state's population. However, many factors can affect these rates, including amounts and types of travel, types of vehicles driven, higher speed traffic, rates of licensure, state traffic laws, emergency care capabilities, weather, and topography.

The following facts are based on analysis of data from the U.S. Department of Transportation's Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS).

Data subsections:

Fatal crash totals

There were 37,248 fatal motor vehicle crashes in the United States in 2007 in which 41,059 deaths occurred. This resulted in a national motor vehicle death rate of 13.6 deaths per 100,000 people. Motor vehicle death rates varied among states from a low of 6.5 deaths per 100,000 people in Massachusetts and Rhode Island, to a high of 30.3 deaths per 100,000 people in Mississippi.

States with lowest and highest rates of motor vehicle crash deaths per 100,000 people, 2007

Population, fatal motor vehicle crashes, motor vehicle crash deaths, and motor vehicle crash deaths per 100,000 people by state, 2007
State Population Fatal motor vehicle crashes Motor vehicle crash deaths
Num Num Rate
Alabama 4,627,851 1,010 1,110 24.0
Alaska 683,478 77 84 12.3
Arizona 6,338,755 948 1,066 16.8
Arkansas 2,834,797 584 650 22.9
California 36,553,215 3,572 3,974 10.9
Colorado 4,861,515 508 554 11.4
Connecticut 3,502,309 252 277 7.9
Delaware 864,764 105 117 13.5
District of Columbia 588,292 36 44 7.5
Florida 18,251,243 2,943 3,214 17.6
Georgia 9,544,750 1,492 1,641 17.2
Hawaii 1,283,388 125 138 10.8
Idaho 1,499,402 218 252 16.8
Illinois 12,852,548 1,127 1,249 9.7
Indiana 6,345,289 804 898 14.2
Iowa 2,988,046 392 445 14.9
Kansas 2,775,997 379 416 15.0
Kentucky 4,241,474 803 864 20.4
Louisiana 4,293,204 893 985 22.9
Maine 1,317,207 170 183 13.9
Maryland 5,618,344 558 614 10.9
Massachusetts 6,449,755 390 417 6.5
Michigan 10,071,822 991 1,088 10.8
Minnesota 5,197,621 458 504 9.7
Mississippi 2,918,785 804 884 30.3
Missouri 5,878,415 900 992 16.9
Montana 957,861 250 277 28.9
Nebraska 1,774,571 230 256 14.4
Nevada 2,565,382 341 373 14.5
New Hampshire 1,315,828 122 129 9.8
New Jersey 8,685,920 674 724 8.3
New Mexico 1,969,915 371 413 21.0
New York 19,297,729 1,238 1,333 6.9
North Carolina 9,061,032 1,513 1,675 18.5
North Dakota 639,715 95 111 17.4
Ohio 11,466,917 1,163 1,257 11.0
Oklahoma 3,617,316 637 754 20.8
Oregon 3,747,455 411 455 12.1
Pennsylvania 12,432,792 1,393 1,491 12.0
Rhode Island 1,057,832 64 69 6.5
South Carolina 4,407,709 974 1,066 24.2
South Dakota 796,214 130 146 18.3
Tennessee 6,156,719 1,110 1,210 19.7
Texas 23,904,380 3,006 3,363 14.1
Utah 2,645,330 258 299 11.3
Vermont 621,254 62 66 10.6
Virginia 7,712,091 940 1,027 13.3
Washington 6,468,424 529 568 8.8
West Virginia 1,812,035 386 431 23.8
Wisconsin 5,601,640 675 756 13.5
Wyoming 522,830 137 150 28.7
US total 301,621,157 37,248 41,059 13.6

Deaths by road user

In 2007, the types of motor vehicle crash deaths varied across states. For example, Wyoming had the lowest percentages of deaths involving car occupants (23 percent) and pedestrians (1 percent) and the highest percentage of deaths involving occupants of SUVs and pickups (50 percent). In contrast, New York had relatively high proportions of car occupant deaths (43 percent) and pedestrian deaths (21 percent), and a relatively low percentage of deaths involving SUV or pickup occupants (15 percent). The highest percentage of motorcyclist deaths occurred in South Dakota (20 percent), and the percentage of pedestrian deaths was highest in the District of Columbia (43 percent).

Motor vehicle crash deaths by type and state, 2007
State Car occupants Pickup and
SUV occupants		 Large truck occupants Motorcyclists Pedestrians Total motor
vehicle deaths*
Num % Num % Num % Num % Num % Num
Alabama 520 47 375 34 15 1 85 8 69 6 1,110
Alaska 34 40 18 21 1 1 6 7 14 17 84
Arizona 366 34 311 29 16 2 132 12 154 14 1,066
Arkansas 261 40 216 33 27 4 80 12 45 7 650
California 1,717 43 827 21 42 1 507 13 640 16 3,974
Colorado 202 36 155 28 22 4 87 16 58 10 554
Connecticut 146 53 45 16 5 2 41 15 31 11 277
Delaware 59 50 24 21 0 0 16 14 16 14 117
District of Columbia 15 34 6 14 0 0 2 5 19 43 44
Florida 1,196 37 660 21 41 1 546 17 531 17 3,214
Georgia 732 45 496 30 35 2 159 10 153 9 1,641
Hawaii 42 30 31 22 0 0 26 19 27 20 138
Idaho 100 40 89 35 5 2 27 11 17 7 252
Illinois 602 48 238 19 13 1 156 12 171 14 1,249
Indiana 396 44 228 25 23 3 113 13 59 7 898
Iowa 211 47 118 27 12 3 61 14 23 5 445
Kansas 186 45 139 33 11 3 46 11 20 5 416
Kentucky 401 46 238 28 21 2 109 13 44 5 864
Louisiana 369 37 355 36 26 3 89 9 107 11 985
Maine 89 49 48 26 5 3 21 11 10 5 183
Maryland 268 44 112 18 6 1 92 15 116 19 614
Massachusetts 197 47 74 18 4 1 57 14 61 15 417
Michigan 537 49 220 20 6 1 120 11 131 12 1,088
Minnesota 231 46 135 27 8 2 58 12 33 7 504
Mississippi 388 44 301 34 11 1 50 6 58 7 884
Missouri 459 46 287 29 32 3 91 9 79 8 992
Montana 100 36 101 36 11 4 36 13 15 5 277
Nebraska 131 51 85 33 7 3 15 6 8 3 256
Nevada 148 40 97 26 3 1 45 12 52 14 373
New Hampshire 56 43 29 22 1 1 25 19 13 10 129
New Jersey 344 48 98 14 14 2 83 11 149 21 724
New Mexico 127 31 141 34 19 5 50 12 52 13 413
New York 573 43 205 15 21 2 168 13 278 21 1,333
North Carolina 807 48 409 24 37 2 194 12 171 10 1,675
North Dakota 40 36 49 44 3 3 8 7 5 5 111
Ohio 651 52 221 18 14 1 190 15 107 9 1,257
Oklahoma 277 37 284 38 25 3 72 10 66 9 754
Oregon 174 38 133 29 6 1 51 11 48 11 455
Pennsylvania 743 50 274 18 27 2 222 15 151 10 1,491
Rhode Island 35 51 6 9 0 0 13 19 13 19 69
South Carolina 428 40 343 32 11 1 122 11 106 10 1,066
South Dakota 57 39 48 33 2 1 29 20 7 5 146
Tennessee 552 46 367 30 26 2 147 12 69 6 1,210
Texas 1,234 37 1,112 33 66 2 394 12 387 12 3,363
Utah 100 33 107 36 9 3 32 11 32 11 299
Vermont 27 41 19 29 1 2 7 11 4 6 66
Virginia 460 45 296 29 19 2 128 12 88 9 1,027
Washington 252 44 138 24 9 2 69 12 60 11 568
West Virginia 190 44 128 30 7 2 39 9 27 6 431
Wisconsin 375 50 159 21 9 1 102 13 58 8 756
Wyoming 34 23 75 50 9 6 19 13 2 1 150
US total 17,639 43 10,670 26 743 2 5,037 12 4,654 11 41,059
*Total includes other and/or unknowns

Crash types

Nationwide, 51 percent of passenger vehicle occupant deaths in 2007 occurred in single-vehicle crashes. The highest proportions of single-vehicle crashes occurred in Rhode Island (76 percent), Wyoming (70 percent), Idaho (67 percent), and North Dakota (66 percent).

Passenger vehicle occupant deaths by crash type and state, 2007
State Single-vehicle Multiple-vehicle All crashes*
Num % Num % Num
Alabama 507 56 397 44 906
Alaska 25 45 30 54 56
Arizona 358 52 332 48 690
Arkansas 255 53 226 47 481
California 1,282 49 1,310 51 2,592
Colorado 179 49 184 51 364
Connecticut 95 49 97 51 192
Delaware 42 51 41 49 83
District of Columbia 8 38 13 62 21
Florida 841 45 1,037 55 1,879
Georgia 613 50 621 50 1,238
Hawaii 42 58 31 42 73
Idaho 128 67 63 33 191
Illinois 435 50 430 50 865
Indiana 330 49 337 51 667
Iowa 161 48 173 52 334
Kansas 158 48 172 52 330
Kentucky 348 54 297 46 645
Louisiana 400 55 329 45 729
Maine 85 61 53 38 140
Maryland 184 48 200 52 384
Massachusetts 173 63 103 37 276
Michigan 323 41 456 59 779
Minnesota 158 41 226 59 384
Mississippi 452 61 289 39 741
Missouri 402 53 355 47 757
Montana 129 63 74 36 204
Nebraska 111 51 106 49 218
Nevada 127 50 127 50 254
New Hampshire 48 56 38 44 86
New Jersey 225 49 231 51 457
New Mexico 180 65 99 35 279
New York 379 48 405 52 786
North Carolina 635 51 600 49 1,235
North Dakota 61 66 31 34 92
Ohio 450 50 451 50 903
Oklahoma 281 49 289 51 571
Oregon 172 54 144 46 316
Pennsylvania 517 50 519 50 1,036
Rhode Island 31 76 10 24 41
South Carolina 487 62 298 38 787
South Dakota 68 64 38 36 106
Tennessee 510 55 418 45 929
Texas 1,115 47 1,279 53 2,394
Utah 123 57 94 43 217
Vermont 24 52 22 48 46
Virginia 443 57 327 42 771
Washington 209 52 189 47 399
West Virginia 187 58 136 42 323
Wisconsin 264 49 274 51 538
Wyoming 78 70 33 30 111
US total 14,838 51 14,034 49 28,896
*Total includes other and/or unknowns

Alcohol involvement

Some states report blood alcohol concentration (BAC) for only a small percentage of fatally injured passenger vehicle drivers. If BAC is missing for a driver, it is imputed by the US Department of Transportation’s multiple imputation model.[ Error ] However, BAC information is most precise in states that report a high percentage of BACs. In the following table, estimated percentages of fatally injured drivers with BACs at or above 0.08 percent are shown only for states in which BAC reporting was 70 percent or higher. Estimated percentages are based on known BAC when available and imputed BAC for the remaining drivers.

For the nation in 2007, BAC was reported for 64 percent of fatally injured passenger vehicle drivers. New Mexico and Vermont reported BACs for 94 percent of fatally injured passenger vehicle drivers, while Alabama reported BACs for 14 percent. Among states with reporting rates of at least 70 percent, North Dakota (50 percent) had the highest estimated percentage of fatally injured drivers with BACs of 0.08 percent or higher, and Kentucky (25 percent) had the lowest.

Estimated number and percent of fatally injured passenger vehicle drivers with BAC ≥ 0.08 percent by state, 2007
State Drivers killed with known BAC results Total drivers killed Estimated drivers killed with BAC ≥ 0.08
Num % Num Num %
Alabama 90 14 658 * *
Alaska 9 26 35 * *
Arizona 307 73 421 158 38
Arkansas 269 76 353 109 31
California 1,398 84 1,674 563 34
Colorado 212 85 248 86 35
Connecticut 122 87 141 58 41
Delaware 34 57 60 * *
District of Columbia 8 67 12 * *
Florida 785 61 1,286 * *
Georgia 416 48 874 * *
Hawaii 48 92 52 22 42
Idaho 94 75 125 44 35
Illinois 538 89 602 213 35
Indiana 311 65 480 * *
Iowa 88 39 224 * *
Kansas 157 65 242 * *
Kentucky 344 72 475 119 25
Louisiana 310 59 527 * *
Maine 94 85 110 42 38
Maryland 230 85 272 94 35
Massachusetts 62 30 207 * *
Michigan 370 68 541 * *
Minnesota 212 71 298 94 32
Mississippi 119 21 570 * *
Missouri 437 81 542 191 35
Montana 125 86 146 66 45
Nebraska 130 87 149 43 29
Nevada 139 79 177 64 36
New Hampshire 58 85 68 19 29
New Jersey 273 83 328 98 30
New Mexico 159 94 170 63 37
New York 383 67 575 * *
North Carolina 449 50 907 * *
North Dakota 53 93 57 28 50
Ohio 595 89 667 207 31
Oklahoma 341 87 391 123 31
Oregon 204 88 232 84 36
Pennsylvania 588 77 764 264 35
Rhode Island 16 59 27 * *
South Carolina 375 67 561 * *
South Dakota 60 85 71 26 37
Tennessee 159 22 712 * *
Texas 639 38 1,660 * *
Utah 64 49 131 * *
Vermont 33 94 35 9 26
Virginia 242 44 551 * *
Washington 254 92 276 109 39
West Virginia 185 78 237 79 33
Wisconsin 351 92 383 161 42
Wyoming 64 83 77 30 39
US total 13,003 64 20,381 7,042 35
*Cells with missing data have insufficient reporting of BAC results by state for reliably estimating percent of fatally injured drivers with BAC ≥ 0.08 percent

Restraint use

When examining restraint use among fatally injured motor vehicle occupants, it is important to note that percentages will be lower than observed restraint use because unrestrained occupants are more likely than restrained occupants to be fatally injured. Restrained occupants include occupants in child safety seats and occupants restrained by safety belts.

The percentage of fatally injured passenger vehicle occupants who were restrained in 2007 varied by state. South Dakota (23 percent) had the lowest percentage of fatally injured restrained occupants, and California had the highest (58 percent). States with a high proportion of unknowns include the District of Columbia (29 percent), Massachusetts (21 percent) and Rhode Island (20 percent). For the nation, 42 percent of fatally injured occupants were restrained.

Number and percent of fatally injured passenger vehicle occupants by restraint use and state, 2007
State Restrained Unrestrained Unknown Total
Num % Num % Num % Num
Alabama 335 37 538 59 33 4 906
Alaska 26 46 30 54 . . 56
Arizona 235 34 375 54 80 12 690
Arkansas 159 33 274 57 48 10 481
California 1,493 58 856 33 243 9 2,592
Colorado 160 44 191 52 13 4 364
Connecticut 88 46 81 42 23 12 192
Delaware 43 52 35 42 5 6 83
District of Columbia 8 38 7 33 6 29 21
Florida 735 39 1,079 57 65 3 1,879
Georgia 488 39 631 51 119 10 1,238
Hawaii 40 55 27 37 6 8 73
Idaho 71 37 112 59 8 4 191
Illinois 364 42 398 46 103 12 865
Indiana 293 44 290 43 84 13 667
Iowa 152 46 153 46 29 9 334
Kansas 130 39 180 55 20 6 330
Kentucky 265 41 380 59 . . 645
Louisiana 237 33 433 59 59 8 729
Maine 57 41 75 54 8 6 140
Maryland 206 54 150 39 28 7 384
Massachusetts 75 27 142 51 59 21 276
Michigan 426 55 252 32 101 13 779
Minnesota 166 43 185 48 33 9 384
Mississippi 226 30 515 70 . . 741
Missouri 244 32 460 61 53 7 757
Montana 58 28 144 71 2 <1 204
Nebraska 67 31 121 56 30 14 218
Nevada 114 45 124 49 16 6 254
New Hampshire 26 30 60 70 . . 86
New Jersey 228 50 213 47 16 4 457
New Mexico 109 39 163 58 7 3 279
New York 413 53 278 35 95 12 786
North Carolina 583 47 539 44 113 9 1,235
North Dakota 27 29 58 63 7 8 92
Ohio 364 40 519 57 20 2 903
Oklahoma 223 39 314 55 34 6 571
Oregon 166 53 104 33 46 15 316
Pennsylvania 333 32 549 53 154 15 1,036
Rhode Island 14 34 19 46 8 20 41
South Carolina 243 31 481 61 63 8 787
South Dakota 24 23 73 69 9 8 106
Tennessee 336 36 536 58 57 6 929
Texas 1,228 51 987 41 179 7 2,394
Utah 103 47 78 36 36 17 217
Vermont 24 52 22 48 . . 46
Virginia 273 35 463 60 35 5 771
Washington 212 53 149 37 38 10 399
West Virginia 113 35 158 49 52 16 323
Wisconsin 196 36 298 55 44 8 538
Wyoming 46 41 64 58 1 <1 111
US total 12,245 42 14,363 50 2,288 8 28,896

Rural versus urban

Sixty-two percent of passenger vehicle occupant deaths in 2007 occurred in rural areas. The state with the greatest proportion of passenger vehicle occupant deaths on rural roads was Vermont (98 percent).

Number and percent of fatally injured passenger vehicle occupants by land use and state, 2007
State Urban Rural Unknown Total
Num % Num % Num % Num
Alabama 274 30 610 67 22 2 906
Alaska 31 55 25 45 0 0 56
Arizona 313 45 377 55 0 0 690
Arkansas 102 21 378 79 1 <1 481
California 1,407 54 1,185 46 0 0 2,592
Colorado 122 34 242 66 0 0 364
Connecticut 162 84 30 16 0 0 192
Delaware 26 31 57 69 0 0 83
District of Columbia 21 100 0 0 0 0 21
Florida 991 53 831 44 57 3 1,879
Georgia 481 39 665 54 92 7 1,238
Hawaii 33 45 40 55 0 0 73
Idaho 21 11 170 89 0 0 191
Illinois 485 56 380 44 0 0 865
Indiana 251 38 416 62 0 0 667
Iowa 56 17 278 83 0 0 334
Kansas 56 17 274 83 0 0 330
Kentucky 125 19 520 81 0 0 645
Louisiana 309 42 419 57 1 <1 729
Maine 11 8 129 92 0 0 140
Maryland 207 54 177 46 0 0 384
Massachusetts 252 91 24 9 0 0 276
Michigan 275 35 504 65 0 0 779
Minnesota 31 8 91 24 262 68 384
Mississippi 196 26 545 74 0 0 741
Missouri 199 26 557 74 1 <1 757
Montana 8 4 196 96 0 0 204
Nebraska 40 18 178 82 0 0 218
Nevada 146 57 107 42 1 <1 254
New Hampshire 13 15 73 85 0 0 86
New Jersey 365 80 92 20 0 0 457
New Mexico 51 18 228 82 0 0 279
New York 314 40 472 60 0 0 786
North Carolina 281 23 949 77 5 <1 1,235
North Dakota 5 5 87 95 0 0 92
Ohio 301 33 601 67 1 <1 903
Oklahoma 136 24 435 76 0 0 571
Oregon 53 17 263 83 0 0 316
Pennsylvania 463 45 573 55 0 0 1,036
Rhode Island 14 34 6 15 21 51 41
South Carolina 70 9 717 91 0 0 787
South Dakota 14 13 92 87 0 0 106
Tennessee 359 39 570 61 0 0 929
Texas 884 37 1,508 63 2 <1 2,394
Utah 62 29 155 71 0 0 217
Vermont 1 2 45 98 0 0 46
Virginia 271 35 499 65 1 <1 771
Washington 127 32 271 68 1 <1 399
West Virginia 50 15 273 85 0 0 323
Wisconsin 164 30 374 70 0 0 538
Wyoming 15 14 96 86 0 0 111
US total 10,644 37 17,784 62 468 2 28,896

References