BEVERLY HILLS (WWJ) -- Oakland County’s traffic-fatality rates continue to be significantly lower than Michigan’s rates overall.
In data released for 2020, Oakland County’s fatality rate was 0.64 deaths per 100 million miles of vehicle travel. That was less than half of both the statewide and national rates, which were 1.37 and 1.49, respectively.
Oakland County has continued to have some of the lowest traffic-fatality rates in the state nearly every year for several decades, due in part to the Road Commission for Oakland County (RCOC) making safety a top priority since the 1970s.
Unlike many parts of the country, the number of traffic fatalities in Oakland County actually dropped from 2019 to 2020. However, numbers show the fatality rate increased slightly overall, because traffic volumes dropped in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
“While our fatality rate increased slightly for 2020 because the traffic volumes were down everywhere, our actual drop in the number of traffic fatalities contrasts with many areas of the country that saw increased traffic fatalities despite the traffic drop,” explained Dennis Kolar, RCOC Managing Director.
If Oakland County’s roads experienced fatalities similar to the national rate, there would be an additional 60 to 70 deaths per year.
“That’s a huge deal,” said Kolar. “That’s 60 to 70 families every year that do not have to bury a loved one.”
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