Traffic fatalities

Highway deaths in the United States declined in 2009, for the fourth consecutive year.

The 33,963 people who died on American highways last year was an 8.9 percent drop from the prior year and down from the 43,510 people killed in 2005. It was the lowest fatality rate since the federal government started keeping track in 1966.

Analysts see a variety of factors behind the drop, with the economy frequently mentioned. With high unemployment and the recession, fewer Americans are driving. However, that does not explain the steady year-to-year decline starting before the recession.

Increased law enforcement has helped with Click It or Ticket campaigns to raise seat-belt usage from 67 percent of drivers in 1999 to 83 percent in 2008.

Impaired driving deaths are down from 15,935 in 1998 to 11,773 10 years later. Laws against driving while texting or talking on the cell phone have reduced safety risks.

Robert Poole, director of transportation policy at the Reason Foundation, attributed the decline to improved road safety, such as the use of rumble strips to alert drivers when they stray off the road.

Auto safety features play a part, too, with anti-lock brakes, stability-control systems and side air bags to protect passengers and drivers. Safety increases, too, as older models without the technology are traded in for new vehicles.

Many factors are at work for the encouraging trend that has saved thousands of lives.