Car accidents decline as gas prises rise

Chuck Boyk

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There is one upside to rising gas prices – the number of car accident fatalities has dropped 20% since this time last year, according to the National Safety Council.

Many believe that the high gas prices have prevented more people from taking to the roads, in turn lowering the overall risk for car accidents. The federal government reported that the miles traveled by Americans was 1.8% less in April 2008 than it was in April 2007.

Other reasons that the number of car accident fatalities has declined could be attributed to higher policing of speeders and drunk drivers, stricter teen licensing laws, or ticket programs, which punish those who do not wear their seatbelts.