Chart assignment
Charts to read and discuss
Read each chart, then answer its questions. Every chart shows its source and date; open it for a table of the numbers and the data to download.
Chart 1 of 1 · Road safety
Which states have the highest and lowest traffic death rates?
The interactive chart needs JavaScript. The numbers are on the chart's page.
In 2024, Mississippi had the highest traffic death rate, 1.81 deaths per 100 million vehicle miles, followed by Arizona (1.74) and South Carolina (1.67). Massachusetts (0.59), Rhode Island (0.68) and Utah (0.77) had the lowest; the U.S. rate was 1.19. Rates also reflect how much driving is on rural roads and how each state estimates its miles driven, so they are not a ranking of drivers.
Questions to discuss
- In one sentence of your own, what does this chart show?
- Find the biggest change or difference in the chart. What might explain it?
- Who collected these numbers, and how recent are they? What else would you want to know before drawing a conclusion?
Source: NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) and FHWA Highway Statistics (table VM-2) (Public domain (U.S. government work)) · Data as of Dec 31, 2024
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