U.S. traffic deaths fall slightly in Q2 but still remain high

FILE - Emergency crews work the scene of a fatal crash in Campbell County, Ky., Jan. 25, 2020. The number of people killed on U.S. roadways continued to rise in the first half of 2022, but the government’s highway safety agency says they declined from April through June. Still, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration called highway deaths a national crisis. The agency said Monday, Sept. 19, 2022 that early estimates show that 20,175 people died in crashes from January through June, an increase of 0.5% over the same period last year. (Albert Cesare/The Cincinnati Enquirer via AP, File)

The Associated Press

DETROIT -- The number of people killed on U.S. roadways fell slightly from April through June, the first decline in two years as roads became more congested as the pandemic eased. But the government says the number of deaths remains at a crisis level.

Estimates from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration show that 20,175 people died in crashes from January through June, a 0.5% increase the same period last year.

Yet the second-quarter decline ended a string of seven straight quarterly increases that began in the summer of 2020. The agency estimated that 10,590 people died on roadways from April to June, nearly 5% fewer than the same period a year ago.

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said while deaths may be declining, they are still at levels that require urgent action. "These deaths are preventable, not inevitable, and we should act accordingly," he said in a prepared statement.