Message to the Congress Transmitting Annual Reports on Highway, Traffic, and Motor Vehicle Safety Programs.

To the Congress of the United States:

This Administration has serious and growing concerns about the tragic number of traffic accidents that each year exact a heavy toll in human life and suffering and economic loss in our society.

Nearly half of the 115,000 annual accidental deaths in America are due to transportation accidents, and regrettably most of the transportation accidents occur on our streets and highways.

To these 55,000 annual traffic deaths must be added the nearly four million injured each year in traffic accidents. Many of the injured suffer permanent disabilities.

The traffic death and injury toll is alarming enough. But when we add to this the $46 billion annual drain on our economy from lost wages, medical expenses, legal fees, insurance payments, home and family care, and other expenses, we realize that we must do more to cut our human and economic losses.

The Federal Government is providing leadership and some financial assistance to reduce the losses. And much has been done by States, communities, industry and private organizations. But we must all resolve to do even more to cut this tragic waste of human life and economic drain.

The Reports of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration transmitted with this letter have been prepared in accordance with the Highway Safety Act of 1966, as amended, and with the National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1966, as amended. They describe basic causes and effects of this problem and efforts of Federal, State and local governments to alleviate it.

Much progress has been made in recent years. For example, the rate of death per 100 million vehicle miles driven has declined from 5.5 in 1967 to 4.7 in 1971. This is an annual decrease of 3.85 percent and a five-year decrease of 14.55 percent. Had the old rate continued, 65,000 persons would have died in traffic accidents in 1971

, 10,000 more than the actual number. We can also take some comfort that traffic deaths have decreased in spite of the fact that we now have more cars, more drivers, more cyclists and more pedestrians on our roads.

But progress is no cause for complacency. We must work even harder to make our highways and cars safer, to educate drivers and pedestrians and to clear our roads of drunken drivers, who are the cause of approximately half the traffic deaths each year.

The three volumes of these reports taken together map our progress in this important area, and I hope they will be read closely by Members of the Congress. Your continued support will be required to back up our national commitment to make our highways and vehicles safer for all Americans.

RICHARD NIXON

THE WHITE HOUSE,

September 13, 1972.