US traffic deaths fall to lowest number since 2019

April 1 (Reuters) - U.S. traffic deaths last year fell to the lowest number since 2019 after a sharp rise in road fatalities during the COVID pandemic.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said traffic deaths fell 6.7% to 36,640 and the fatality rate fell to 1.10 fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles traveled, the second lowest in U.S. history. American road deaths jumped dramatically during the 2020 COVID pandemic and remained elevated for years.