In 2003, 21 percent (448) of children killed in motor vehicle crashes were killed in alcohol-related crashes and almost half (209) were passengers in vehicles driven by alcohol-impaired individuals.

In 2003, 35 % (167 of 471) of children aged 0-5 who were killed in motor vehicle crashes were completely unrestrained. It is estimated that from 1975-2003 7,020 children’s lives were saved due to the use of child restraints. 53% of those children who were killed in 2003 age 15 and under were unrestrained.

21% of bicyclists killed in 2003 in motor vehicle related accidents were under the age of 15. 130 children died in these accidents of the 630 total fatalities of bicycle-motor vehicle accidents. The 130 children who died represent a 54% reduction in bicyclist fatalities as compared to the 282 children killed in in 1993, according to the United States Department of Transportation's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Additionally, traffic fatality and injury rates remain at historic lows.

In 2003 children aged 0-14 accounted for 5% of the total traffic fatalities in the United States or 2,136 of the 42,643 total traffic fatalities.

Children under age 15 accounted for 4% (1,591) of all vehicle occupant deaths and (253,000) of all people injured in vehicle crashes.

2003 saw an average of 6 children 0-14 years of age were killed and 694 were injured each day in motor vehicle crashes.

Motorcycle fatalities continue increasing

Motorcycle rider fatalities increased each year between 1997 and 2003 with a total increase of 1,476 or 70 percent. There were 42,643 deaths from traffic crashes in 2003, a net reduction of 172 from 2002 (Table 1). In the same period, motorcycle crash fatalities increased by 348.

Motorcycle rider fatalities, following a longer-term trend, declined each year from 1993 to 1997, reaching a historic low of 2,116 in 1997. While other types of crashes have also contributed to the net increase in fatalities, motorcycles, which made up about 2 percent of all registered vehicles and 0.3 percent of all vehicle miles traveled (VMT), accounted for over 8 percent of the fatalities in 2003 compared to 5 per­cent in 1997, a significant increase as a component of the annual loss of life in traffic crashes.