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Transportation & Safety · NHTSA FARS · 1975-2024

American Road Deaths

Since 1975 the federal government has logged every fatal crash on a public road - a mortality census, one row per wreck, coded by hour, road type, and blood alcohol. This page reads fifty years of that ledger: who dies, where, at what hour of which night, and how a decline that took three decades to earn came partly undone in three years.

~40,000 road deaths a year ~37K/yr fatal crashes Illustrative
No. 01

Fifty years of the toll

Deaths per year · 1975-2024

The record opens in 1975 with the country losing more than 44,525 people a year to its roads. Seatbelt law, airbags, drunk-driving enforcement, and safer car bodies then did what almost no public-health effort manages: they cut the toll 36% from the 1980 peak to the 2011 floor. After 2020, the country gave a decade of that progress back - emptier pandemic roads driven faster, and the deadliest years since 2005. The latest line has only started to bend down again.

0 20k 40k 51,091 · 1980 peak 32,479 · 2011 floor 39,600 · 2024 198019902000201020202024
Deaths within 30 days of a crash on a public trafficway - the FARS definition throughout this page. Illustrative stand-in series that mirrors the real arc's shape; see the table and Methodology.
The arc as a table
YearRoad deaths
197544,525
198051,091
198543,825
199044,599
199541,817
200041,945
200543,510
201032,999
201132,479
201432,744
201637,806
201836,835
202038,824
202142,939
202242,514
202340,901
202439,600
No. 02

Three signatures in the record

Share of road deaths

However the ledger is cut - by state, by road, by year - three patterns keep surfacing. Alcohol is present in nearly a third of the entries. Almost half of them happen in the dark. And a growing share of the dead were never in a vehicle at all. Every section below is one of these signatures pulled out and held to the light.

31%

Alcohol-involved

a driver at or over the 0.08 legal limit was in the crash

18%

Pedestrian & cyclist

the person killed was outside a vehicle

49%

After dark

the crash happened in dark conditions, lit or unlit

Shares of the same annual toll; a death can carry more than one signature. Illustrative stand-in shares - see Methodology.

No. 03

The person outside the car

Deaths indexed · 2010 = 100

Cars have never been better at protecting the people inside them: crumple zones, side-curtain airbags, automatic braking. The growth in the ledger is outside the glass. Since 2010, deaths of pedestrians and cyclists are up roughly +51%, while deaths of vehicle occupants moved +10%. The road got safer to crash on and deadlier to walk beside.

100 120 140 160 20102014201820222024 +51% outside +10% occupants
Both series indexed to their 2010 level (= 100), so the slopes compare directly. Illustrative stand-in series - the real split reads from the FARS PEDS and FATALS fields, refined by the person file. See the table below and Methodology.
The series as a table
YearOutside a vehicleIndexedVehicle occupantsIndexed
2010 5,300 100 24,400 100
2012 5,900 111 24,900 102
2014 6,100 115 24,000 98
2016 7,000 132 26,400 108
2018 7,400 140 25,400 104
2020 7,600 143 27,200 111
2022 8,400 158 28,800 118
2024 8,000 151 26,900 110
No. 04

How the crashes happen

Share of deaths · manner of collision

The fatal crash of the imagination is two cars meeting. The fatal crash of the record usually is not: in the largest share of entries there is no second vehicle at all - a car leaves the road, rolls, or strikes a person, a cyclist, or a tree. Roughly 58% of deaths happen that way, more than every two-vehicle configuration combined.

20% 40% 60% No second vehicle No second vehicle - 58% of deaths (the vehicle left the road, rolled, or struck a person, cyclist, or fixed object) 58% Angle Angle - 18% of deaths (two vehicles crossing paths, most often at an intersection) 18% Head-on Head-on - 10% of deaths (opposite directions on the same road, usually an undivided two-lane) 10% Rear-end Rear-end - 7% of deaths (front into rear, often at highway speed differentials) 7% Sideswipe Sideswipe - 3% of deaths (same or opposite direction, glancing contact) 3% Other / unknown Other / unknown - 4% of deaths (manner not reported or not classifiable) 4%
“No second vehicle” is FARS manner-of-collision code 0: the crash was not a collision between two motor vehicles in transport. Illustrative stand-in shares - see the table and Methodology.
What each manner counts
MannerShare of deathsWhat it covers
No second vehicle 58% the vehicle left the road, rolled, or struck a person, cyclist, or fixed object
Angle 18% two vehicles crossing paths, most often at an intersection
Head-on 10% opposite directions on the same road, usually an undivided two-lane
Rear-end 7% front into rear, often at highway speed differentials
Sideswipe 3% same or opposite direction, glancing contact
Other / unknown 4% manner not reported or not classifiable
No. 05

When the roads turn deadly

Share of deaths · by hour

The toll is not spread evenly across the day. It climbs through the afternoon to a hard evening peak around 6p and stays elevated deep into the night: the 5pm-to-3am window alone carries roughly 53% of all road deaths, on a fraction of the day's traffic. The quietest stretch is the pre-dawn morning around 5a, when the roads are nearly empty.

12a - 4.6% of deaths 1a - 4.3% of deaths 2a - 4.1% of deaths 3a - 3.3% of deaths 4a - 2.6% of deaths 5a - 2.4% of deaths 6a - 2.7% of deaths 7a - 3% of deaths 8a - 3% of deaths 9a - 2.9% of deaths 10a - 3% of deaths 11a - 3.2% of deaths 12p - 3.5% of deaths 1p - 3.7% of deaths 2p - 4% of deaths 3p - 4.5% of deaths 4p - 5.4% of deaths 5p - 5.9% of deaths 6p - 6% of deaths 7p - 5.7% of deaths 8p - 5.3% of deaths 9p - 4.9% of deaths 10p - 4.8% of deaths 11p - 4.6% of deaths 6% at 6p 12a6a12p6p
Each column is one hour's share of the day's deaths; the signal columns mark the 5pm-to-3am window. Illustrative stand-in distribution - the real shape comes from the FARS HOUR field. See Methodology.
No. 06

The shape of the week

Share of weekly deaths · day x hour

Cross the hour against the day and the record shows its darkest corner. The weekday evening rush registers plainly enough - but the deep stain sits in the small hours of Saturday and Sunday: the ride home from Friday and Saturday night. The single deadliest cell of the American week is Sunday, 12a to 1a, at 1.25% of the week's toll - an hour when traffic is a fraction of its daytime volume.

12a6a12p6p Sun Sun 12a - 1.25% of the week's deaths Sun 1a - 1.17% of the week's deaths Sun 2a - 1.11% of the week's deaths Sun 3a - 0.9% of the week's deaths Sun 4a - 0.35% of the week's deaths Sun 5a - 0.32% of the week's deaths Sun 6a - 0.36% of the week's deaths Sun 7a - 0.4% of the week's deaths Sun 8a - 0.4% of the week's deaths Sun 9a - 0.39% of the week's deaths Sun 10a - 0.4% of the week's deaths Sun 11a - 0.43% of the week's deaths Sun 12p - 0.47% of the week's deaths Sun 1p - 0.5% of the week's deaths Sun 2p - 0.54% of the week's deaths Sun 3p - 0.61% of the week's deaths Sun 4p - 0.73% of the week's deaths Sun 5p - 0.8% of the week's deaths Sun 6p - 0.81% of the week's deaths Sun 7p - 0.77% of the week's deaths Sun 8p - 0.72% of the week's deaths Sun 9p - 0.66% of the week's deaths Sun 10p - 0.65% of the week's deaths Sun 11p - 0.62% of the week's deaths Mon Mon 12a - 0.61% of the week's deaths Mon 1a - 0.57% of the week's deaths Mon 2a - 0.54% of the week's deaths Mon 3a - 0.44% of the week's deaths Mon 4a - 0.34% of the week's deaths Mon 5a - 0.32% of the week's deaths Mon 6a - 0.36% of the week's deaths Mon 7a - 0.4% of the week's deaths Mon 8a - 0.4% of the week's deaths Mon 9a - 0.38% of the week's deaths Mon 10a - 0.4% of the week's deaths Mon 11a - 0.42% of the week's deaths Mon 12p - 0.46% of the week's deaths Mon 1p - 0.49% of the week's deaths Mon 2p - 0.53% of the week's deaths Mon 3p - 0.59% of the week's deaths Mon 4p - 0.71% of the week's deaths Mon 5p - 0.78% of the week's deaths Mon 6p - 0.79% of the week's deaths Mon 7p - 0.75% of the week's deaths Mon 8p - 0.7% of the week's deaths Mon 9p - 0.65% of the week's deaths Mon 10p - 0.63% of the week's deaths Mon 11p - 0.61% of the week's deaths Tue Tue 12a - 0.61% of the week's deaths Tue 1a - 0.57% of the week's deaths Tue 2a - 0.54% of the week's deaths Tue 3a - 0.44% of the week's deaths Tue 4a - 0.34% of the week's deaths Tue 5a - 0.32% of the week's deaths Tue 6a - 0.36% of the week's deaths Tue 7a - 0.4% of the week's deaths Tue 8a - 0.4% of the week's deaths Tue 9a - 0.38% of the week's deaths Tue 10a - 0.4% of the week's deaths Tue 11a - 0.42% of the week's deaths Tue 12p - 0.46% of the week's deaths Tue 1p - 0.49% of the week's deaths Tue 2p - 0.53% of the week's deaths Tue 3p - 0.59% of the week's deaths Tue 4p - 0.71% of the week's deaths Tue 5p - 0.78% of the week's deaths Tue 6p - 0.79% of the week's deaths Tue 7p - 0.75% of the week's deaths Tue 8p - 0.7% of the week's deaths Tue 9p - 0.65% of the week's deaths Tue 10p - 0.63% of the week's deaths Tue 11p - 0.61% of the week's deaths Wed Wed 12a - 0.61% of the week's deaths Wed 1a - 0.57% of the week's deaths Wed 2a - 0.54% of the week's deaths Wed 3a - 0.44% of the week's deaths Wed 4a - 0.34% of the week's deaths Wed 5a - 0.32% of the week's deaths Wed 6a - 0.36% of the week's deaths Wed 7a - 0.4% of the week's deaths Wed 8a - 0.4% of the week's deaths Wed 9a - 0.38% of the week's deaths Wed 10a - 0.4% of the week's deaths Wed 11a - 0.42% of the week's deaths Wed 12p - 0.46% of the week's deaths Wed 1p - 0.49% of the week's deaths Wed 2p - 0.53% of the week's deaths Wed 3p - 0.59% of the week's deaths Wed 4p - 0.71% of the week's deaths Wed 5p - 0.78% of the week's deaths Wed 6p - 0.79% of the week's deaths Wed 7p - 0.75% of the week's deaths Wed 8p - 0.7% of the week's deaths Wed 9p - 0.65% of the week's deaths Wed 10p - 0.63% of the week's deaths Wed 11p - 0.61% of the week's deaths Thu Thu 12a - 0.61% of the week's deaths Thu 1a - 0.57% of the week's deaths Thu 2a - 0.54% of the week's deaths Thu 3a - 0.44% of the week's deaths Thu 4a - 0.34% of the week's deaths Thu 5a - 0.32% of the week's deaths Thu 6a - 0.36% of the week's deaths Thu 7a - 0.4% of the week's deaths Thu 8a - 0.4% of the week's deaths Thu 9a - 0.38% of the week's deaths Thu 10a - 0.4% of the week's deaths Thu 11a - 0.42% of the week's deaths Thu 12p - 0.46% of the week's deaths Thu 1p - 0.49% of the week's deaths Thu 2p - 0.53% of the week's deaths Thu 3p - 0.59% of the week's deaths Thu 4p - 0.71% of the week's deaths Thu 5p - 0.78% of the week's deaths Thu 6p - 0.79% of the week's deaths Thu 7p - 0.75% of the week's deaths Thu 8p - 0.7% of the week's deaths Thu 9p - 0.65% of the week's deaths Thu 10p - 0.63% of the week's deaths Thu 11p - 0.61% of the week's deaths Fri Fri 12a - 0.64% of the week's deaths Fri 1a - 0.6% of the week's deaths Fri 2a - 0.57% of the week's deaths Fri 3a - 0.46% of the week's deaths Fri 4a - 0.36% of the week's deaths Fri 5a - 0.33% of the week's deaths Fri 6a - 0.38% of the week's deaths Fri 7a - 0.42% of the week's deaths Fri 8a - 0.42% of the week's deaths Fri 9a - 0.4% of the week's deaths Fri 10a - 0.42% of the week's deaths Fri 11a - 0.45% of the week's deaths Fri 12p - 0.49% of the week's deaths Fri 1p - 0.52% of the week's deaths Fri 2p - 0.56% of the week's deaths Fri 3p - 0.63% of the week's deaths Fri 4p - 1.01% of the week's deaths Fri 5p - 1.11% of the week's deaths Fri 6p - 1.13% of the week's deaths Fri 7p - 1.07% of the week's deaths Fri 8p - 1% of the week's deaths Fri 9p - 0.92% of the week's deaths Fri 10p - 0.9% of the week's deaths Fri 11p - 0.86% of the week's deaths Sat Sat 12a - 1.18% of the week's deaths Sat 1a - 1.1% of the week's deaths Sat 2a - 1.05% of the week's deaths Sat 3a - 0.85% of the week's deaths Sat 4a - 0.4% of the week's deaths Sat 5a - 0.37% of the week's deaths Sat 6a - 0.42% of the week's deaths Sat 7a - 0.46% of the week's deaths Sat 8a - 0.46% of the week's deaths Sat 9a - 0.45% of the week's deaths Sat 10a - 0.46% of the week's deaths Sat 11a - 0.49% of the week's deaths Sat 12p - 0.54% of the week's deaths Sat 1p - 0.57% of the week's deaths Sat 2p - 0.62% of the week's deaths Sat 3p - 0.69% of the week's deaths Sat 4p - 0.83% of the week's deaths Sat 5p - 0.91% of the week's deaths Sat 6p - 0.92% of the week's deaths Sat 7p - 0.88% of the week's deaths Sat 8p - 1.05% of the week's deaths Sat 9p - 0.97% of the week's deaths Sat 10p - 0.95% of the week's deaths Sat 11p - 0.91% of the week's deaths
  1. under 0.45%
  2. 0.45 - 0.62
  3. 0.62 - 0.90
  4. 0.90%+
The outlined cell is the week's deadliest hour. Illustrative stand-in grid - the real one crosses the FARS DAY_WEEK and HOUR fields. See the table and Methodology.
The week in six-hour blocks
Day12a - 6a6a - 12p12p - 6p6p - 12aAll day
Sun 5.1%2.4%3.7%4.2% 15.4%
Mon 2.8%2.4%3.6%4.1% 12.9%
Tue 2.8%2.4%3.6%4.1% 12.9%
Wed 2.8%2.4%3.6%4.1% 12.9%
Thu 2.8%2.4%3.6%4.1% 12.9%
Fri 3%2.5%4.3%5.9% 15.7%
Sat 5%2.7%4.2%5.7% 17.5%
No. 07

The geography of the toll

Deaths per 100k · by state

Adjusted for population, the map darkens along the rural South and the Mountain West - long, fast, unlit two-lane roads, and an hour or more to a trauma center. Mississippi runs near 25.4 deaths per 100k, more than four times District of Columbia's 5.2. The dense, slower Northeast holds the pale end of the scale. Where you drive is a larger term in the odds than how you drive.

Alabama - 18.4 per 100k Alaska - 9 per 100k Arizona - 16.8 per 100k Colorado - 11.5 per 100k Florida - 15.9 per 100k Georgia - 14.2 per 100k Indiana - 13.2 per 100k Kansas - 15 per 100k Maine - 10 per 100k Massachusetts - 5.6 per 100k Minnesota - 7.1 per 100k New Jersey - 6.5 per 100k North Carolina - 15.6 per 100k North Dakota - 14.8 per 100k Oklahoma - 17.9 per 100k Pennsylvania - 11 per 100k South Dakota - 18.6 per 100k Texas - 14.7 per 100k Wyoming - 18.9 per 100k Connecticut - 6.3 per 100k Missouri - 14.5 per 100k West Virginia - 18.2 per 100k Illinois - 9.8 per 100k New Mexico - 21.8 per 100k Arkansas - 20.3 per 100k California - 11.8 per 100k Delaware - 12 per 100k District of Columbia - 5.2 per 100k Hawaii - 9.5 per 100k Iowa - 11.6 per 100k Kentucky - 17.5 per 100k Maryland - 8.9 per 100k Michigan - 10.9 per 100k Mississippi - 25.4 per 100k Montana - 21.5 per 100k New Hampshire - 7 per 100k New York - 7.4 per 100k Ohio - 10.6 per 100k Oregon - 10.8 per 100k Tennessee - 17.2 per 100k Utah - 9.1 per 100k Virginia - 10.2 per 100k Washington - 8.2 per 100k Wisconsin - 10.4 per 100k Nebraska - 12.3 per 100k South Carolina - 22.1 per 100k Idaho - 14 per 100k Nevada - 13.5 per 100k Vermont - 8 per 100k Louisiana - 19.6 per 100k Rhode Island - 6 per 100k
  1. under 10
  2. 10 - 15
  3. 15 - 20
  4. 20 and up
One hue, light to dark, four bins of deaths per 100k residents. Illustrative stand-in rates - see the table and Methodology.
All states, ranked by rate
#StateDeaths / 100k
01 Mississippi 25.4
02 South Carolina 22.1
03 New Mexico 21.8
04 Montana 21.5
05 Arkansas 20.3
06 Louisiana 19.6
07 Wyoming 18.9
08 South Dakota 18.6
09 Alabama 18.4
10 West Virginia 18.2
11 Oklahoma 17.9
12 Kentucky 17.5
13 Tennessee 17.2
14 Arizona 16.8
15 Florida 15.9
16 North Carolina 15.6
17 Kansas 15
18 North Dakota 14.8
19 Texas 14.7
20 Missouri 14.5
21 Georgia 14.2
22 Idaho 14
23 Nevada 13.5
24 Indiana 13.2
25 Nebraska 12.3
26 Delaware 12
27 California 11.8
28 Iowa 11.6
29 Colorado 11.5
30 Pennsylvania 11
31 Michigan 10.9
32 Oregon 10.8
33 Ohio 10.6
34 Wisconsin 10.4
35 Virginia 10.2
36 Maine 10
37 Illinois 9.8
38 Hawaii 9.5
39 Utah 9.1
40 Alaska 9
41 Maryland 8.9
42 Washington 8.2
43 Vermont 8
44 New York 7.4
45 Minnesota 7.1
46 New Hampshire 7
47 New Jersey 6.5
48 Connecticut 6.3
49 Rhode Island 6
50 Massachusetts 5.6
51 District of Columbia 5.2
No. 08

The deadliest roads by state

Deaths per 100k · worst first

Ranked by deaths per 100,000 residents, so a small state with heavy losses outranks a populous one - Mississippi's roads are deadlier than Texas's even though Texas buries far more people. The national rate sits at 12.5 per 100k. The trend figure is the five-year change in each state's rate: positive means the roads got deadlier, and almost every entry is positive.

  1. 01
    Mississippi 25.4 /100k
    780 deaths Alcohol 32% Pedestrian 14% After dark 55% Rural 72%
    +8%
  2. 02
    South Carolina 22.1 /100k
    1,180 deaths Alcohol 34% Pedestrian 17% After dark 56% Rural 55%
    +11%
  3. 03
    New Mexico 21.8 /100k
    470 deaths Alcohol 31% Pedestrian 22% After dark 58% Rural 58%
    +6%
  4. 04
    Arkansas 20.3 /100k
    640 deaths Alcohol 29% Pedestrian 12% After dark 54% Rural 65%
    +5%
  5. 05
    Louisiana 19.6 /100k
    900 deaths Alcohol 33% Pedestrian 16% After dark 57% Rural 52%
    +9%
  6. 06
    Wyoming 18.9 /100k
    110 deaths Alcohol 30% Pedestrian 9% After dark 52% Rural 84%
    +4%
  7. 07
    Alabama 18.4 /100k
    940 deaths Alcohol 30% Pedestrian 13% After dark 55% Rural 60%
    +7%
  8. 08
    Tennessee 17.2 /100k
    1,240 deaths Alcohol 28% Pedestrian 14% After dark 56% Rural 48%
    +10%
  9. 09
    Arizona 16.8 /100k
    1,290 deaths Alcohol 27% Pedestrian 24% After dark 59% Rural 30%
    +12%
  10. 10
    Florida 15.9 /100k
    3,600 deaths Alcohol 25% Pedestrian 21% After dark 58% Rural 22%
    +6%
  11. 11
    Texas 14.7 /100k
    4,480 deaths Alcohol 30% Pedestrian 18% After dark 57% Rural 42%
    +9%
  12. 12
    Georgia 14.2 /100k
    1,600 deaths Alcohol 26% Pedestrian 17% After dark 56% Rural 40%
    +8%
  13. 13
    California 11.8 /100k
    4,600 deaths Alcohol 29% Pedestrian 25% After dark 58% Rural 26%
    +5%
  14. 14
    Ohio 10.6 /100k
    1,250 deaths Alcohol 30% Pedestrian 12% After dark 55% Rural 44%
    +3%
  15. 15
    Illinois 9.8 /100k
    1,240 deaths Alcohol 27% Pedestrian 16% After dark 57% Rural 32%
    +2%
  16. 16
    New York 7.4 /100k
    1,470 deaths Alcohol 24% Pedestrian 26% After dark 56% Rural 26%
    +1%
  17. 17
    Minnesota 7.1 /100k
    410 deaths Alcohol 27% Pedestrian 11% After dark 52% Rural 55%
    -1%
  18. 18
    Massachusetts 5.6 /100k
    390 deaths Alcohol 26% Pedestrian 18% After dark 53% Rural 12%
    -3%

Eighteen states curated to span the ranking; the composition line under each bar carries the three signatures plus the rural share. Illustrative stand-in figures - see Methodology. Compare two states side by side →

No. 09

Every state has its own arc

Rate per 100k · 2014-2024 · shared scale

The national arc is an average; no state actually drove it. Drawn on one shared scale, the panels separate into registers: the Deep South and Mountain West running at double or triple the Northeast's rate, and nearly every line kinking upward after 2020. The hairline in each panel is the national rate, 12.5 per 100k.

  1. Mississippi 25.4
  2. South Carolina 22.1
  3. New Mexico 21.8
  4. Arkansas 20.3
  5. Louisiana 19.6
  6. Wyoming 18.9
  7. Alabama 18.4
  8. Tennessee 17.2
  9. Arizona 16.8
  10. Florida 15.9
  11. Texas 14.7
  12. Georgia 14.2
  13. California 11.8
  14. Ohio 10.6
  15. Illinois 9.8
  16. New York 7.4
  17. Minnesota 7.1
  18. Massachusetts 5.6

Every panel shares one 0-28 scale; the figure beside each name is the latest rate per 100k. Illustrative stand-in series - see the table and Methodology.

All panels as a table
State201420162018202020222024
Mississippi 23.623.72424.126.725.4
South Carolina 19.221.119.521.722.322.1
New Mexico 19.12121.22123.121.8
Arkansas 18.119.918.419.921.720.3
Louisiana 16.818.517.118.92119.6
Wyoming 17.419.117.618.918.918.9
Alabama 16.618.216.918.418.618.4
Tennessee 14.616.114.916.518.417.2
Arizona 14.814.81515.417.316.8
Florida 14.315.814.615.815.915.9
Texas 13.113.213.414.71514.7
Georgia 12.413.712.613.91414.2
California 10.511.610.711.512.611.8
Ohio 1010.110.210.910.810.6
Illinois 9.59.59.69.310.19.8
New York 77.77.17.57.47.4
Minnesota 7.17.17.26.87.37.1
Massachusetts 5.85.85.95.65.95.6
No. 10

The rural road paradox

Deaths vs miles driven

Most driving happens in and around cities, yet the countryside carries a wildly disproportionate share of the dead. Rural roads see roughly 19% of the miles driven but about 40% of the deaths. Higher speeds, no median, no shoulder lighting, and a long ride to the nearest trauma center: mile for mile, a rural road is about 2.1x as deadly as an urban one.

Rural roads

1.9 / billion mi
Share of deaths40%
Share of miles driven19%

Urban roads

0.9 / billion mi
Share of deaths60%
Share of miles driven81%

Both bars in each panel share one 0-100% scale, so the gap between the deaths bar and the miles bar is the story. Illustrative stand-in figures - the deaths split reads from FARS RUR_URB; the mileage split needs an FHWA VMT join. See Methodology.

No. 11

Ruralness is the through-line

Rate vs rural share · by state

Put the two on one plot and the pattern behind this whole page snaps into focus: the higher a state's rural share, the higher its rate runs. Mississippi and Wyoming sit high and right; Massachusetts and New York low and left. The exceptions prove the rule - Arizona and Florida ride above the trend on pedestrian deaths in fast urban sprawl, and Minnesota shows a rural state can still hold a low rate.

0 10 20 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% deaths / 100k share of deaths on rural roads Mississippi - 72% of deaths on rural roads, 25.4 deaths per 100k South Carolina - 55% of deaths on rural roads, 22.1 deaths per 100k New Mexico - 58% of deaths on rural roads, 21.8 deaths per 100k Arkansas - 65% of deaths on rural roads, 20.3 deaths per 100k Louisiana - 52% of deaths on rural roads, 19.6 deaths per 100k Wyoming - 84% of deaths on rural roads, 18.9 deaths per 100k Alabama - 60% of deaths on rural roads, 18.4 deaths per 100k Tennessee - 48% of deaths on rural roads, 17.2 deaths per 100k Arizona - 30% of deaths on rural roads, 16.8 deaths per 100k Florida - 22% of deaths on rural roads, 15.9 deaths per 100k Texas - 42% of deaths on rural roads, 14.7 deaths per 100k Georgia - 40% of deaths on rural roads, 14.2 deaths per 100k California - 26% of deaths on rural roads, 11.8 deaths per 100k Ohio - 44% of deaths on rural roads, 10.6 deaths per 100k Illinois - 32% of deaths on rural roads, 9.8 deaths per 100k New York - 26% of deaths on rural roads, 7.4 deaths per 100k Minnesota - 55% of deaths on rural roads, 7.1 deaths per 100k Massachusetts - 12% of deaths on rural roads, 5.6 deaths per 100k MississippiWyomingArizonaFloridaNew YorkMinnesotaMassachusetts
Eighteen states, one dot each. Rural share is the portion of the state's road deaths on roads FARS codes rural (RUR_URB = 1). Illustrative stand-in values - the full list is in the table. See Methodology.
All 18 states, rural share and rate
StateRural share of deathsDeaths / 100k
Wyoming 84% 18.9
Mississippi 72% 25.4
Arkansas 65% 20.3
Alabama 60% 18.4
New Mexico 58% 21.8
South Carolina 55% 22.1
Minnesota 55% 7.1
Louisiana 52% 19.6
Tennessee 48% 17.2
Ohio 44% 10.6
Texas 42% 14.7
Georgia 40% 14.2
Illinois 32% 9.8
Arizona 30% 16.8
California 26% 11.8
New York 26% 7.4
Florida 22% 15.9
Massachusetts 12% 5.6
Appendix

Notes on the record

Methodology

The figures on this page are shaped to NHTSA FARS (FARS 2024 National (illustrative stand-ins)), the Fatality Analysis Reporting System - the federal census of every fatal crash on a U.S. public road, coded continuously since 1975. FARS ships as one row per crash across linked files (accident, vehicle, person). A death counts here when it occurs within 30 days of a crash involving at least one motor vehicle on a trafficway - FARS's own definition, used throughout. Rates per 100,000 residents require a Census population join, since FARS carries no population column.

What's real, what's a stand-in

Every number on this page is an illustrative stand-in: values chosen to sit in the right neighborhood of the real FARS totals so the page could be designed against real structure. That covers the 50-year arc, the three signature shares, the inside-vs-outside divergence, the manner-of-collision split, the hour and day-of-week grids, the state map and ranking, the per-state sparklines, the rural figures, and the scatter. None of it is a live ingest, and the page says so wherever a number appears: the Illustrative badge in the masthead, and a stand-in note under every figure.

The path to real is already built and documented. The exact bulk-download URL, the ACCIDENT-file column mapping, and the aggregation script live in this site's HANDOFF.md, src/lib/source.ts, and scripts/build-data.ts; dropping the real FARS CSV into data/raw/ regenerates every chart from real rows without touching a component. We never present curated numbers as real.

How each reading is cut

Hour and week grids read the FARS HOUR and DAY_WEEK fields (unknown hours, coded 99, are dropped). After dark means light condition 2, 3, or 6 - dark, whether lit or unlit. Alcohol-involved flags a crash with at least one driver at or over 0.08 BAC - presence, not adjudicated cause - and impairment by other drugs is coded separately and not counted here. Manner of collision follows the MAN_COLL code; "no second vehicle" is code 0, a crash that was not a collision between two motor vehicles in transport. Deaths outside a vehicle are approximated at the crash level from the non-motorist count; a precise victim-level split (pedestrian vs cyclist vs occupant) needs the person file. Rural follows the RUR_URB land-use code, and the state sparklines apply one population vintage across all years - real historical rates need per-year Census estimates.

What you're not seeing

Fatal crashes only. FARS excludes the far larger universe of injury and property-damage crashes, so nothing here speaks to how often people are hurt and survive. State figures track where a crash happened, not where the dead lived, and small states swing hard year to year on a handful of deaths. And a share-of-deaths reading can shift because its denominator moved: pedestrian deaths can rise as a share simply because occupant deaths fell. The indexed divergence chart exists precisely to keep those two stories separate.

Generated 2026-07-07 00:00 UTC. Source: NHTSA FARS · bulk National CSV.