Alcohol Involvement in Fatal Motor-Vehicle Crashes -- United
States, 1995-1996
The table (Table_1) and figure (Figure_1) on page 1155
compare alcohol involvement in fatal motor-vehicle crashes for 1995
and 1996. A fatal crash is considered alcohol-related by the
National
Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) if either a driver or
nonoccupant (e.g., pedestrian) had a blood alcohol concentration
(BAC)
of greater than or equal to 0.01 g/dL in a police-reported traffic
crash.
Because BACs are not available for all persons in fatal crashes,
NHTSA
estimates the number of alcohol-related traffic fatalities based on
a discriminant analysis of information from all cases for which
driver or nonoccupant BAC data are available (1).
Overall, the number of alcohol-related traffic fatalities
decreased by less than 1% from 1995 to 1996; for BACs of 0.01-0.09
g/dL, the decrease was 0.5%, for BACs greater than or equal to 0.10
g/dL (the legal limit of intoxication for adults in most states),
the decrease was 1.0%. A notable increase (9.8%) occurred among
those aged 15-20 years where a driver or nonoccupant had a BAC
greater than or equal to 0.10 g/dL.
Reference
Klein TM. A method of estimating posterior BAC distributions for
persons involved in fatal traffic accidents: final report.
Washington, DC: US Department of Transportation, National
Highway
Traffic Safety Administration, 1986; report no. DOT-HS-807-094.
Table_1 Note:
To print large tables and graphs users may have to change their printer settings to landscape and use a small font size.
Changes in the estimated number and percentage of traffic fatalities
(including drivers, occupants, and nonoccupants), by age group * and
highest blood alcohol concentration (BAC)+ of driver & or nonoccupant
in crashes -- United States, January 1 - December 31, 1995, compared
with January 1 - December 31, 1996
=====================================================================
No. fatalities
------------------------
Age group (yrs) 1995 1996
--------------------------------------------------------
<15 @ 2,203 2,193
15-20 4,013 4,004
21-24 1,845 1,766
25-34 3,252 3,192
35-64 7,293 7,619
>=65 5,923 5,945
Total ** 24,529 24,721
<15 @ 211 193
15-20 739 698
21-24 526 530
25-34 797 782
35-64 1,103 1,134
>=65 364 384
Total ** 3,739 3,721
<15 @ 384 374
15-20 1,473 1,617
21-24 1,894 1,816
25-34 3,869 3,636
35-64 5,132 5,144
>=65 712 749
Total ** 13,464 13,336
---------------------------------------------------------------------
* Age was unknown for 84 traffic fatalities in 1995 and 130 traffic
fatalities in 1996.
+ BAC distributions are estimates for drivers and nonoccupants
involved in fatal crashes. Fatalities include all occupants and
nonoccupants who died within 30 days of a motor vehicle crash
on a public roadway and whose age was known.
& Driver may or may not have been killed.
@ Although usually too young to drive legally, persons in this age
group are included for completeness.
** The number of fatalities for each BAC category is rounded to the
nearest whole number.
====================================================================
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