The economic impact of traffic crashes on the nation is both overwhelming andfar-reaching.

The annual societal cost of traffic crashes is $299.5 billion,more than three times the $97.7 billion cost of congestion,according AAA's recent “Crashes vs. Congestion–What's the Cost toSociety?” report.

The overall cost of crashes equals to $1,522 per personannually, compared to an annual cost of $590 per person forcongestion.

The costs of crashes are based on the Federal HighwayAdministration's comprehensive costs for traffic fatalities andinjuries that assign a dollar value to a variety of components.These components include medical and emergency services, lostearnings and household production, property damage,and diminished quality of life, among other things.

The report also calculates the costs of crashes for the samemetropolitan areas covered by the annual Urban MobilityReport conducted by the Texas Transportation Institute. Theresults indicate that crash costs exceed congestion in everymetropolitan area studied, from very large to small.

For example, crash costs are nearly doubled than those ofcongestion in very large urban areas with populations more thanthree million. Those costs rise to nearly six times congestioncosts in small urban areas where populations are less than 500,000and motorists face less congested conditions.

The study, conducted for AAA by Cambridge Systematics, furtherunderscores the importance of a long-term, multi-year federaltransportation bill that will provide the necessary and sustainedinvestments that lead to better and safer roads.

“Almost 33,000 people–635 per week–dieon U.S. roadways each year and that's unacceptable,” says AAAPresident and CEO Robert L. Darbelnet. “While the decline intraffic fatalities in recent years signifies a positive trend, ourwork is far from over. Continued progress will require active andfocused leadership, improved communication and collaboration, andan investment in data collection and evaluation to make sure we'readdressing the nation's most serious safety challenges.”

Source: www.aaa.com.