TABLE 7-5 Fatalities by Highest Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) in Highway Crashes: 2005–2012
| 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total fatalities | 43,510 | 42,708 | 41,259 | 37,423 | 33,883 | 32,999 | 32,479 | 33,561 |
| Fatalities in alcohol-related crashes (BAC = .01+) | 15,985 | 15,970 | 15,534 | 13,826 | 12,731 | 11,906 | 11,527 | 12,041 |
| Percent | 36.7 | 37.4 | 37.6 | 36.9 | 37.6 | 36.1 | 35.5 | 35.9 |
| BAC = 0.00 | ||||||||
| Number | 27,423 | 26,633 | 25,611 | 23,499 | 21,051 | 21,005 | 20,848 | 21,411 |
| Percent | 63.0 | 62.4 | 62.1 | 62.8 | 62.1 | 63.7 | 64.2 | 63.8 |
| BAC = 0.01 - 0.07 | ||||||||
| Number | 2,404 | 2,479 | 2,494 | 2,115 | 1,972 | 1,771 | 1,662 | 1,719 |
| Percent | 5.5 | 5.8 | 6.0 | 5.7 | 5.8 | 5.4 | 5.1 | 5.1 |
| BAC = 0.08+ | ||||||||
| Number | 13,582 | 13,491 | 13,041 | 11,711 | 10,759 | 10,136 | 9,865 | 10,322 |
| Percent | 31.2 | 31.6 | 31.6 | 31.3 | 31.8 | 30.7 | 30.4 | 30.8 |
KEY: BAC = blood alcohol concentration.
NOTES: Total fatalities include those in which there was no driver or motorcycle rider present. BAC values have been assigned by U.S. Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) when alcohol test results are unknown. Alcohol-related crashes pertain to the BAC of the driver and nonoccupants struck by motor vehicles. For some years, numbers for Fatalities in alcohol-related crashes (BAC = .01+) may not add to totals due to rounding.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT), National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, National Center for Statistics and Analysis, Traffic Safety Facts (Washington, DC: Annual Issues), available at http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/ as of May 2014 (Revised), as cited in USDOT, Bureau of Transportation Statistics, National Transportation Statistics, table 2-26, available at http://www.bts.gov as of June 2014.