There were 32,675 Americans who died in car crashes in 2014, which is about 10,000 less than in 2004. Advanced safety features in cars as well as better road design are credited in part for this decline. Nationally, there are an average of 10.2 deaths per 100,000 people. Researchers say that accidents are more common on rural roads in New York and elsewhere because drivers tend to drive faster.
They may also be less likely to wear a seat belt while they are more likely to strike an animal trying to cross the road. According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, more than half of all crash deaths are on rural roads. This is despite the fact that only 19 percent of the population lives in rural areas and only 30 percent of miles traveled are on such roads.
In South Carolina, 45.3 percent of miles were driven on rural roads in 2014, yet 82 percent of all fatal car crashes occurred on those roads. Wyoming was the most dangerous state to drive in the nation with 25.7 deaths per 100,000 people. Rhode Island was among the safest states with roughly five deaths per 100,000 people. Impaired driving was another common cause of traffic fatalities. In Montana, 49 percent of drivers had more than the legal limit of alcohol in their systems.
Car accidents can occur for a variety of reasons, including adverse road or weather conditions or a defective auto part. When it can be determined, however, that a collision was caused by the negligence of another motorist, occupants of other vehicles who have been injured might be able to recover compensation for their losses through a personal injury lawsuit filed with the help of an attorney against the at-fault driver.