Idaho Traffic Crashes, 2008

NHTSA · 2008 · ROSA P / Idaho. Office of Highway Operations and Safety

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Summary

This report, published by the Idaho Transportation Department’s Office of Highway Operations and Safety, provides a comprehensive statistical analysis of motor vehicle crashes in Idaho for the year 2008. The document serves as an annual resource for state and local agencies to identify traffic safety problems, target crash reduction programs, and understand the economic impact of traffic incidents. The data is derived from the Idaho Transportation Department State Crash Database, which includes crashes investigated by law enforcement that resulted in injury, death, or property damage exceeding $1,500. The report highlights a significant decrease in traffic crashes and fatalities in 2008 compared to 2007. Total motor vehicle crashes dropped by 5.5% to 25,002, while fatalities decreased by 8% from 252 to 232. The statewide fatality rate fell to 1.52 per 100 million vehicle miles traveled (VMT), down from 1.59 in 2007. The authors attribute these declines partly to high gasoline prices, which reduced VMT by 3.5% and led to consistent decreases in crashes during the summer months when fuel costs peaked. Conversely, motorcycle and bicycle crashes increased, likely as drivers sought alternative transportation. The estimated economic cost of crashes in Idaho for 2008 was nearly $2.6 billion, equating to $1,700 per resident. Key findings identify specific risk factors and vulnerable populations. Impaired driving contributed to just over 41% of motor vehicle fatalities, with 94% of victims in these crashes being the impaired driver or their passengers. Aggressive driving was a contributing factor in 54% of all crashes and resulted in 100 deaths. Youthful drivers (ages 15–19) were 2.8 times more likely than other drivers to be involved in fatal or injury crashes. Rural roadways accounted for 77% of fatal crashes, despite comprising 39% of total crashes, largely due to higher speed limits and lower traffic volumes. Single-vehicle crashes, though less frequent, were 2.5 times more likely to result in a fatality than multiple-vehicle crashes, with overturns being the leading harmful event. The report also examines safety restraint usage and other demographic factors. Observed seat belt use decreased slightly to 77%, yet only 33% of occupants killed in crashes were wearing seat belts; the report estimates that 53 lives could have been saved if all occupants had been belted. Commercial motor vehicle fatal crashes increased by 7%, while injury crashes involving these vehicles decreased by 14%. The document concludes by detailing crash distributions by county, city, time of day, and contributing circumstances, providing a granular view of Idaho’s traffic safety landscape to inform future policy and enforcement strategies.

Key finding

Idaho's 2008 motor vehicle fatality rate was 1.52 per 100 million vehicle miles traveled, representing a decrease from 1.59 in 2007, while total crashes declined by 5.5 percent to 25,002.

Methodology

dataset

Provenance

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Topics

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• incidence prevalence
• fatality injury trends
• demographic disparities
• comparative international

Information type

What kind of knowledge this paper contributes, grouped by family — independent of topic (what it is about) and method (how it was studied).

• Empirical Findings: crash risk outcomes, observational prevalence
• Methodological Resource: dataset resource