NEWS RELEASE
MICHIGAN DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
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It's National Passenger Safety week, but U.S. roadway deaths are rising again at an alarming rate.
People are still driving recklessly. Drunk, drugged and distracted driving are on the rise. Just telling people to drive safely isn’t enough. We need to do more. We can do more. Passengers need to play a more active role in their own safety and that of others. Passengers need to be empowered to speak up and have the courage to intervene when their lives are threatened by an unsafe driver.
We Save Lives and the National Road Safety Foundation launched National Passenger Safety Week and were joined by more than 50 other partners on a mission to empower passengers. By speaking up you share that you care about the lives of your friends, family members and even strangers. We urge you – choose to stay safe by intervening.
Statistics show that in 2020:
- 16 per cent of all traffic fatalities were passengers in vehicles
- 56 per cent of the deaths of teenage passengers in passenger vehicles occurred in vehicles driven by another teenager
- 24 per cent of deaths in passenger vehicles (cars, SUVs, pickups, vans, and minivans) were passengers
- 6,275 vehicle passengers were killed in crashes.
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