Fatality Facts 2022Collisions with fixed objects and animals

Overview

About 20% of motor vehicle crash deaths result from a vehicle leaving the roadway and hitting a fixed object alongside the road. Trees, utility poles, and traffic barriers are the most common objects struck. Almost half of the deaths in fixed-object crashes occur at night. Alcohol is a frequent contributing factor. Motorists also run off the road because of excessive speeds, falling asleep, inattention or poor visibility.

From 1975 to the mid-2000s there was a general upward trend in deaths from collisions with animals, but this trend has leveled off over the past decade. In 2022, these deaths occurred most often during July-September.

The following facts are based on analysis of data from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS).

The information on fixed-object crashes is based on fatal crashes in which the most harmful event coded was a collision with a fixed object, regardless of whether the first harmful event also was a collision with a fixed object or was instead another type of crash, such as a collision between two motor vehicles, that in turn led to a collision with a fixed object. Information on the most harmful event became available in FARS in 1979.

The information on collisions with animals is based on fatal crashes in which the first harmful event coded was a collision with an animal. Many of these collisions involve secondary impacts that are more severe, such as colliding with another vehicle or a tree. Information on the first harmful event has been available since FARS was established in 1975. FARS does not track the type of animal involved in the collision. However, according to a review of 147 fatal animal crashes during 2000-02 in nine states, 77% of the struck animals were deer, and a variety of other animals were involved including cattle, horses, dogs, bears, cats and opossums (Williams & Wells, 2005).

Posted June 2024.

Trends

A total of 8,697 people died in fixed-object crashes in 2022, 2% fewer than in 2021 and 18% fewer than in 1979. The proportion of motor vehicle crash deaths involving collisions with fixed objects has remained between 19% and 23% since 1979.

Deaths in fixed-object crashes as a percentage of all motor vehicle crash deaths, 1979-2022
Year	Fixed object crash deaths		Other deaths		All deaths
Year	Number	%	Number	%	Number	%
1979	10,550	21	40,543	79	51,093	100
1980	10,968	21	40,123	79	51,091	100
1981	9,464	19	39,837	81	49,301	100
1982	8,417	19	35,528	81	43,945	100
1983	8,333	20	34,256	80	42,589	100
1984	8,796	20	35,461	80	44,257	100
1985	9,319	21	34,506	79	43,825	100
1986	9,851	21	36,236	79	46,087	100
1987	9,662	21	36,728	79	46,390	100
1988	9,865	21	37,222	79	47,087	100
1989	9,537	21	36,045	79	45,582	100
1990	9,355	21	35,244	79	44,599	100
1991	8,894	21	32,614	79	41,508	100
1992	8,221	21	31,029	79	39,250	100
1993	8,256	21	31,894	79	40,150	100
1994	8,142	20	32,574	80	40,716	100
1995	8,524	20	33,293	80	41,817	100
1996	8,442	20	33,623	80	42,065	100
1997	8,381	20	33,632	80	42,013	100
1998	8,401	20	33,100	80	41,501	100
1999	8,431	20	33,286	80	41,717	100
2000	8,899	21	33,046	79	41,945	100
2001	9,011	21	33,185	79	42,196	100
2002	9,580	22	33,425	78	43,005	100
2003	9,433	22	33,451	78	42,884	100
2004	9,242	22	33,594	78	42,836	100
2005	9,176	21	34,334	79	43,510	100
2006	9,303	22	33,405	78	42,708	100
2007	9,289	23	31,970	77	41,259	100
2008	8,792	23	28,631	77	37,423	100
2009	7,928	23	25,955	77	33,883	100
2010	7,529	23	25,470	77	32,999	100
2011	7,378	23	25,101	77	32,479	100
2012	7,697	23	26,085	77	33,782	100
2013	7,553	23	25,341	77	32,894	100
2014	7,518	23	25,226	77	32,744	100
2015	7,700	22	27,785	78	35,485	100
2016	8,039	21	29,767	79	37,806	100
2017	7,875	21	29,598	79	37,473	100
2018	7,465	20	29,370	80	36,835	100
2019	7,308	20	29,047	80	36,355	100
2020	8,622	22	30,385	78	39,007	100
2021	8,904	21	34,326	79	43,230	100
2022	8,697	20	33,817	80	42,514	100

Trees are the most common fixed object struck in fatal crashes. Forty-four percent of deaths in fixed-object crashes in 2022 involved a vehicle striking a tree. Utility poles and traffic barriers were the next most common objects struck, accounting for 12% and 10% of deaths, respectively.

Distribution of fixed-object crash deaths by object struck, 2022

Deaths in fixed-object crashes by object struck, 2022
Object struck	Number	%
Tree	3,836	44
Utility pole	1,027	12
Traffic barrier	844	10
Embankment	425	5
Ditch	355	4
Culvert	238	3
Fence	204	2
Wall	182	2
Traffic sign support	179	2
Building	169	2
Bridge pier	169	2
Guardrail end	128	1
Other	941	11
Total	8,697	100

Alcohol

Forty-two percent of drivers killed in fixed-object crashes in 2022 had blood alcohol concentrations (BACs) at or above 0.08%. By comparison, 25% of drivers killed in other types of fatal crashes had BACs this high. The percentage of drivers killed in fixed-object crashes with BACs at or above 0.08% declined from 66% in 1982 to 42% in 2022, a reduction of 36%.

Percent of fatally injured drivers with BACs ≥ 0.08% by crash type, 1982-2022

Estimated number and percent of fatally injured drivers with BACs ≥ 0.08% by crash type, 1982-2022
Year	Fixed object crashes			Other crashes			All crashes
	Driver deaths	Estimated deaths with BACs ≥ 0.08		Driver deaths	Estimated deaths with BACs ≥ 0.08		Driver deaths	Estimated deaths with BACs ≥ 0.08
	Number	Number	%	Number	Number	%	Number	Number	%
1982	6,089	3,991	66	18,601	8,148	44	24,690	12,139	49
1983	6,074	3,925	65	18,064	7,618	42	24,138	11,543	48
1984	6,496	4,027	62	19,093	7,472	39	25,589	11,499	45
1985	6,927	4,078	59	18,410	6,608	36	25,337	10,685	42
1986	7,121	4,209	59	19,509	7,201	37	26,630	11,409	43
1987	6,974	3,965	57	19,859	7,093	36	26,833	11,058	41
1988	7,239	3,987	55	20,014	7,116	36	27,253	11,103	41
1989	6,962	3,926	56	19,427	6,711	35	26,389	10,637	40
1990	6,786	3,897	57	18,964	6,498	34	25,750	10,395	40
1991	6,398	3,538	55	17,532	5,947	34	23,930	9,485	40
1992	5,979	3,151	53	16,605	5,301	32	22,584	8,452	37
1993	5,957	3,079	52	17,185	5,243	31	23,142	8,322	36
1994	5,943	2,885	49	17,748	5,028	28	23,691	7,913	33
1995	6,197	3,018	49	18,193	5,289	29	24,390	8,307	34
1996	6,077	2,917	48	18,457	5,258	28	24,534	8,175	33
1997	6,081	2,881	47	18,586	4,962	27	24,667	7,843	32
1998	6,280	2,964	47	18,463	4,870	26	24,743	7,834	32
1999	6,249	2,908	47	19,008	5,010	26	25,257	7,918	31
2000	6,595	3,080	47	18,972	5,086	27	25,567	8,166	32
2001	6,685	3,050	46	19,184	5,203	27	25,869	8,252	32
2002	7,218	3,292	46	19,441	5,224	27	26,659	8,515	32
2003	7,083	3,163	45	19,696	5,191	26	26,779	8,354	31
2004	6,987	3,083	44	19,884	5,072	26	26,871	8,155	30
2005	7,033	3,096	44	20,458	5,393	26	27,491	8,489	31
2006	7,273	3,190	44	20,075	5,388	27	27,348	8,578	31
2007	7,202	3,293	46	19,368	5,324	27	26,570	8,617	32
2008	6,955	3,128	45	17,299	4,833	28	24,254	7,961	33
2009	6,242	2,773	44	15,593	4,440	28	21,835	7,213	33
2010	5,925	2,599	44	15,147	3,980	26	21,072	6,579	31
2011	5,897	2,566	44	14,918	3,959	27	20,815	6,524	31
2012	6,163	2,634	43	15,327	4,100	27	21,490	6,735	31
2013	6,052	2,655	44	14,892	3,893	26	20,944	6,548	31
2014	6,044	2,603	43	14,744	3,783	26	20,788	6,387	31
2015	6,162	2,501	41	16,186	3,875	24	22,348	6,376	29
2016	6,506	2,576	40	17,209	4,105	24	23,715	6,681	28
2017	6,424	2,617	41	17,333	4,047	23	23,757	6,664	28
2018	6,129	2,347	38	16,916	4,002	24	23,045	6,349	28
2019	5,985	2,468	41	16,762	3,928	23	22,747	6,396	28
2020	7,045	2,794	40	17,815	4,422	25	24,860	7,216	29
2021	7,353	3,054	42	20,202	5,136	25	27,555	8,189	30
2022	7,229	3,040	42	19,613	4,972	25	26,842	8,012	30

Age and sex

Twenty-three percent of drivers killed in fixed-object crashes in 2022 were males younger than 30. Overall, males accounted for 82% of drivers killed in these crashes.

Driver deaths in fixed-object crashes by age and sex, 2022
Age	Male		Female		*Total
Age	Number	%	Number	%	Number	%
<16	12	<1	7	<1	19	<1
16-19	355	5	88	1	443	6
20-24	683	9	133	2	817	11
25-29	648	9	143	2	791	11
30-34	616	9	149	2	768	11
35-39	531	7	101	1	633	9
40-44	469	6	81	1	550	8
45-49	419	6	94	1	513	7
50-54	437	6	95	1	532	7
55-59	410	6	75	1	485	7
60-64	440	6	78	1	518	7
65-69	293	4	61	1	354	5
≥70	629	9	163	2	792	11
Total*	5,951	82	1,270	18	7,229	100
*Total includes other and/or unknowns

Crash types

Ninety-five percent of fixed-object crash deaths in 2022 occurred in single-vehicle crashes.

Deaths in fixed-object crashes by crash type, 2022
Crash type	Deaths	%
Single-vehicle crashes	8,220	95
Multiple-vehicle crashes	477	5
All crashes	8,697	100

Eighteen percent of deaths in fixed-object crashes in 2022 involved vehicles rolling over.

Deaths in fixed-object crashes by rollover occurrence, 2022
Rollover occurrence	Deaths	%
Rollover	1,554	18
No rollover	5,650	65
Total*	8,697	100
*Total includes other and/or unknowns

Eighteen percent of passenger vehicle occupant deaths in fixed-object crashes in 2022 involved ejection; 14% of the occupants killed were fully ejected, and 4% were partially ejected.

Passenger vehicle occupant deaths in fixed-object crashes by occupant ejection status, 2022
Ejection status	Deaths	%
Not ejected	5,505	81
Fully ejected	968	14
Partially ejected	296	4
Total*	6,838	100
*Total includes other and/or unknowns

When and where crashes occur

Eighteen percent of deaths in fixed-object crashes in 2022 occurred on interstates and freeways, 38% occurred on other major roads, and 43% occurred on minor roads.

Deaths in fixed-object crashes by road type, 2022
Road type	Deaths	%
Interstates and freeways	1,576	18
Other major roads	3,302	38
Minor roads	3,755	43
All road types*	8,697	100
*Total includes other and/or unknowns

Fifty-five percent of deaths in fixed-object crashes in 2022 occurred on urban roads.

Deaths in fixed-object crashes by land use, 2022
Land use	Deaths	%
Urban	4,772	55
Rural	3,897	45
Total*	8,697	100
*Total includes other and/or unknowns

Forty-three percent of deaths in fixed-object crashes in 2022 occurred on roads with speed limits of 55 mph or higher.

Deaths in fixed-object crashes by speed limit, 2022
Speed limit	Deaths	%
≤35 mph	2,271	26
40-50 mph	2,362	27
55+ mph	3,765	43
Total*	8,697	100
*Total includes other and/or unknowns

Forty-three percent of deaths in fixed-object crashes in 2022 occurred at night (9 p.m. to 6 a.m.), with the highest proportion occurring between midnight and 3 a.m. (17%).

Deaths in fixed-object crashes by time of day, 2022
Hour of day	Deaths	%
Midnight - 3 a.m.	1,486	17
3 a.m. - 6 a.m.	874	10
6 a.m. - 9 a.m.	782	9
9 a.m. - noon	738	8
Noon - 3 p.m.	1,006	12
3 p.m. - 6 p.m.	1,173	13
6 p.m. - 9 p.m.	1,188	14
9 p.m. - midnight	1,350	16
Total*	8,697	100
*Total includes other and/or unknowns

Collisions with animals

From 1975 to the mid-2000s there was a general upward trend in deaths from collisions with animals, but this trend has since leveled off. These deaths increased from 89 in 1975 to 223 in 2007 and then declined to 184 in 2022. In 2022, the highest number of deaths in collisions with animals occurred during July-September.

Motor vehicle crash deaths involving collisions with animals, 1975-2022

Motor vehicle crash deaths in collisions with animals by quarter of the year, 1975-2022
Year	Months				Total
Year	Jan-Mar	Apr-Jun	Jul-Sep	Oct-Dec	Total
1975	14	15	28	32	89
1976	15	25	34	25	99
1977	13	15	27	24	79
1978	7	19	34	20	80
1979	16	21	30	35	102
1980	14	22	33	25	94
1981	14	19	43	29	105
1982	10	18	27	27	82
1983	11	28	32	24	95
1984	11	25	33	23	92
1985	12	24	44	24	104
1986	21	29	26	35	111
1987	15	30	35	31	111
1988	14	23	44	37	118
1989	20	33	42	36	131
1990	14	17	39	36	106
1991	23	34	31	34	122
1992	20	27	34	39	120
1993	16	22	27	36	101
1994	20	41	27	43	131
1995	17	29	36	41	123
1996	14	59	38	42	153
1997	17	35	39	45	136
1998	17	36	59	53	165
1999	18	35	46	53	152
2000	29	30	45	46	150
2001	24	51	43	59	177
2002	21	42	57	50	170
2003	23	57	72	60	212
2004	26	55	62	61	204
2005	18	47	57	58	180
2006	26	67	63	66	222
2007	15	64	82	62	223
2008	25	58	70	57	210
2009	24	52	67	41	184
2010	20	62	87	44	213
2011	19	44	71	65	199
2012	20	50	62	44	176
2013	15	54	74	49	192
2014	18	50	60	38	166
2015	15	47	59	68	189
2016	20	55	58	56	189
2017	20	64	65	63	212
2018	20	60	67	43	190
2019	14	64	67	41	186
2020	21	46	78	57	202
2021	12	45	42	65	164
2022	22	49	65	48	184

Over the past 10 years, Texas had the highest numbers of deaths from collisions with animals. The numbers reflect the size of the driving population, the size of the animal population and the percentage of rural roads.

Motor vehicle crash deaths in collisions with animals by state, 2013-2022
State	Year										Total
State	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	Total
Alabama	1	9	2	3	1	3	3	3	2	3	30
Alaska	3	0	3	0	2	3	1	0	1	4	17
Arizona	2	0	3	1	4	2	4	2	3	4	25
Arkansas	3	4	4	7	1	2	2	2	2	4	31
California	4	4	2	5	9	4	3	4	4	3	42
Colorado	7	6	7	4	5	2	2	5	2	5	45
Connecticut	2	0	0	1	2	0	0	1	1	0	7
Delaware	0	0	1	0	0	0	1	0	0	1	3
Florida	6	1	4	4	5	6	6	9	7	8	56
Georgia	2	5	5	4	3	7	9	9	5	5	54
Hawaii	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1
Idaho	3	1	2	1	2	0	0	0	1	1	11
Illinois	5	4	8	7	4	8	4	10	2	4	56
Indiana	3	2	5	5	7	7	7	5	2	5	48
Iowa	4	3	0	2	2	5	1	4	6	5	32
Kansas	7	2	4	7	7	3	5	5	4	5	49
Kentucky	3	4	4	4	3	6	6	8	6	4	48
Louisiana	3	2	0	1	2	1	4	2	1	1	17
Maine	0	3	4	2	1	1	0	4	0	0	15
Maryland	4	0	1	1	1	2	0	1	0	1	11
Massachusetts	1	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	3	5
Michigan	9	8	7	15	17	14	12	2	9	10	103
Minnesota	8	3	8	3	6	9	5	4	3	9	58
Mississippi	1	3	5	3	4	2	3	2	1	2	26
Missouri	2	3	4	6	7	6	9	6	4	5	52
Montana	10	1	4	6	3	3	7	12	7	1	54
Nebraska	2	1	4	1	3	2	1	3	0	1	18
Nevada	2	1	1	1	1	1	0	1	2	1	11
New Hampshire	0	0	4	0	1	1	0	2	0	0	8
New Jersey	3	3	2	1	3	2	4	0	6	3	27
New Mexico	4	2	2	6	5	1	3	2	3	2	30
New York	4	4	9	4	5	6	10	4	4	2	52
North Carolina	4	2	8	5	1	3	3	2	5	2	35
North Dakota	1	4	1	1	1	2	2	2	0	1	15
Ohio	8	4	4	6	10	3	4	3	10	8	60
Oklahoma	3	6	8	4	3	6	6	3	5	9	53
Oregon	1	2	2	0	0	7	3	3	5	0	23
Pennsylvania	15	10	8	13	15	11	8	15	12	6	113
Rhode Island	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	2
South Carolina	5	8	7	4	3	6	10	2	4	4	53
South Dakota	2	1	0	3	3	3	0	4	0	2	18
Tennessee	8	4	2	2	4	6	4	2	1	5	38
Texas	18	25	22	19	27	16	16	21	18	19	201
Utah	1	1	1	1	3	2	2	1	0	4	16
Vermont	0	0	2	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	4
Virginia	4	3	1	3	5	5	1	6	3	6	37
Washington	3	2	1	3	4	1	0	7	0	4	25
West Virginia	2	2	3	3	2	2	0	2	1	2	19
Wisconsin	7	13	7	13	13	7	14	15	12	6	107
Wyoming	1	0	3	2	1	1	1	2	0	2	13
U.S. Total	192	166	189	189	212	190	186	202	164	184	1874

Among animal-involved crash deaths in 2022, 65% occurred in crashes in which the most harmful event was a collision with an animal. Collisions in which the most harmful evet was a rollover accounted for 11%, and those in which the most harmful event was a collision with a fixed object accounted for 10%.

Percent distribution of animal-involved crash deaths by the most harmful event, 2022

Motor vehicle crash deaths in collisions with animals by the most harmful event, 2022
Most harmful event	Deaths	%
Collision with an animal	120	65
Rollover	20	11
Collision with a fixed object	19	10
Collision with a vehicle in transport	12	7
Fire	1	1
Other	12	7
Total	184	100