Bicycling fatalities accounted for 773 deaths in 2006, a number that's too high despite being 01.6% lower than the previous year.
Accidents leading to bicycling deaths occurred more often in urban areas, at non-intersection locations, between 5 and 9 p.m. during the summer months. Nearly one-fourth of the bike riders had blood-alcohol content of .08%, which would qualify them for DUI if they were behind the wheel of a motor vehicle.
These are just some of the findings in the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration report for bicycle deaths and injuries for the year 2006, the latest data available.
Bike riders killed on the road are remembered by the annual Ride of Silence, (May 21, 2008), and by the white Ghost Cycles (website temporarily down) located at the scene of the tragedy.
Injuries and fatalities
The annual bicyclist report (.pdf file) on publishes information about fatalities and injuries by age, sex, and states where the deaths occurred.
The 773 bicycling deaths in 2006 accounted for 2% of people who died in traffic crashes in 2006; the 44,000 injured accounted for about 2% of everyone injured on the roads.
Among men, the 45-54 age group suffered the most deaths (147); among women it was the 35-44 age group (19). Overall, 667 male bicyclists died in crashes, compared to 94 females.
Injury rates were highest among males aged 16-20; among women it was ages 21-24.
By state
As in previous years, California and Florida led the nation in bicycle fatalities, with 141 and 132 respectively. The District of Columbia, North Dakota, Vermont and Wyoming all had zero fatalities in 2006.
The report also charts fatalities by rate (per 1 million population) and as a percentage of total traffic fatalities. A really informative comparison between the states would calculate fatalities by bicycling miles overall, although I don't know how they'd reliably estimate total bike miles.
The 10 worst states based on rate per million population:
1. Florida - 7.32. Louisiana - 5.6
3. Arizona - 4.7
4. Delaware - 4.69
5. Nevada - 4.01
6. Utah - 3.92
7. California - 3.87
8. Oregon - 3.78
9. South Carolina - 3.7
10. Indiana - 3.33
The 10 worst states based on % of overall traffic deaths:
1. Florida - 3.9
2. Utah - 3.5
3. California - 3.3
4. New York - 3.1
5. Oregon - 2.9
6. Delaware - 2.7
7. Michigan - 2.6
8. Hawaii - 2.5
9. Louisiana - 2.4
10. Nevada - 2.3
Arizona - 2.3
Indiana - 2.3
The most bicycle fatalities in the past 10 years occurred in 1997, with 814. The fewest fatalities was 2003 with 629.
