Traffic fatalities hit an early milestone in Minnesota. By late April, Minnesota saw more than 100 people die in crashes on its roadways, which has not happened this early in the year since 2016.
Per the Star Tribune, many of the fatal crashes that took place on Minnesota’s roads this year shared similar elements in common.
Contributing factors
Speed is a major contributor to road deaths and crash-related injuries in Minnesota. Speed-related traffic deaths have already doubled in comparison to this timeframe last year, with 40 people dying in speed-related crashes in Minnesota already in 2021.
Drunk driving is another common factor in fatal Minnesota car wrecks. While there have been fewer alcohol-involved fatal crashes so far this year than there were within the same span last year, alcohol and speed continue to play a role in more than half of all Minnesota traffic deaths.
Victim statistics
Many victims of fatal Minnesota car crashes have things in common. So far this year, 70% of those who died in fatal car crashes across Minnesota were men. Many were also young, with 37 of this year’s fatal crash deaths involving individuals between 21 and 40 years of age.
Many fatal crash victims were also not wearing seat belts. So far this year, 31 people were not wearing seat belts when they died in crashes on Minnesota roads. Last year, there were 21 such traffic fatalities by late spring.
The majority of the victims of fatal crashes in Minnesota this year were driving or traveling in passenger cars. However, pedestrians, bicyclists and cyclists also died in car crashes.