Increase in Overall Highway Fatality Rate in 2005

An increase in motorcycle and pedestrian deaths contributed to an overall rise in highway fatalities in 2005, the U.S. Department of Transportation?s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced today. The total number of fatalities rose 1.4 percent from 42,836 in 2004 to 43,443 in 2005 while the rate of fatalities was 1.47 fatalities per 100 million vehicle miles traveled (VMT), up from 1.45 in 2004.