A report recently released by the National Highway Traffic Administration analyzes in detail the 2008 statistics on traffic fatalities, examining what factors might have contributed to the dramatic reduction in deaths on America's highways that year. While the report notes that the recent drop in deaths coincided with a recession in the U.S. economy, other possible causes are also identified.

"The long-term declining trend observed in fatalities since reaching a high in the early 1970s has occurred while significant vehicle and occupant safety regulations and programs were being enacted by NHTSA and the states," according to the report. "NHTSA-administered behavioral and vehicle safety programs, both in the crashworthiness and crash avoidance areas, and through the issuing of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards, has contributed tremendously to the long-term downward trend in motor-vehicle traffic crash fatalities."

The number of Americans killed in motor-vehicle crashes in 2008 not only continued a recent downward trend in those statistics but was also the lowest level of deaths on the nation's highways since 1961, according to the report.

Highway fatalities reached 43,510 in 2005 -- the highest number since 1990. Since that peak in 2005, the number of fatalities has steadily declined each year to 37,261 in 2008. That number fell 10% between 2007 and 2008 alone, and fatalities are expected to drop further to 33,963 for 2009. This would mean that between 2005 and 2009, motor-vehicle crash deaths have declined nearly 22%.

Also in 2008, the fatality rate per 100 million vehicle miles traveled reached an all-time low of 1.25. There was also a decline of more than 17% from 2007 to 2008 in fatalities involving passenger vehicle drivers ages 16 to 24. At the same time, fatalities in crashes fell by about 11% for passenger vehicle drivers ages 25 to 44, 10% for those ages 45 to 64, and 7% for those 65 and older. Child fatalities during that time decreased by about 20%.

Other major declines in fatalities were those that occurred in multiple-vehicle crashes (about 13%), crashes involving large trucks (about 12%), and crashes that took place during weekends (about 11%). In addition, occupant deaths in vehicles that rolled over in multiple-vehicle crashes decreased 19%. Motorcyclist and bicyclist deaths were among the few categories to show any increase in 2008.

NHTSA's 38-page report examining traffic deaths from 2008 is available at tinyurl.com/NHTSA-Report.