(Bloomberg) -- U.S. motor vehicle deaths last year topped40,000 for the first time since 2007 as cheap gasoline and ahealthy economy encouraged motorists to drive more, according tonew estimates released Wednesday by the National Safety Council.
Roadside fatalities last year hit 40,200, a 6 percent gain from2015 and up 14 percent from 2014, according to the group. Thetrend reflects similar findings by the National Highway TrafficSafety Administration, which in January reported an 8 percentrise in deadly crashes in the first nine months of 2016 compared tothe prior-year period.
The National Safety Council, a nonprofit safety advocacygroup, also released survey findings showing that 47 percent ofmotorists are comfortable texting while driving. Some 10 percent ofdrivers reported driving drunk, and 43 percent of them wereinvolved in a crash while impaired, the group said. The survey alsofound that 16 percent said they don’t wear seatbelts on every trip,while 25 percent are comfortable speeding on residentialstreets.
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