(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.

Related: Vehicle crashes involving road debris haveincreased 40% since 2001

"These results underscore how our complacency is killing us,"Deborah Hersman, chief executive of the National Safety Council,said during a press conference Wednesday. She added that a 3percent rise in vehicle miles traveled fails to fully explain the 6percent rise in deaths seen last year.

Renewed call for total phone ban

To stem the tide, the group renewed a call for a total ban onmobile phone use behind the wheel, even hands-free systems. It alsocalled for mandatory ignition interlocks for convicted drunkdrivers, a three-tiered driver licensing system for all new driversunder 21 and other steps to curb crashes.

The group also estimated that crashes cost about $432.5 billionlast year, including those stemming from motor vehicle deaths,injuries and property damage.

Related: 10 people die every day during the summer from acrash involving a teen driver

The National Safety Council measures roadside deaths differentlythan NHTSA. The group counts traffic and non-traffic deaths withinone year of an accident. NHTSA counts only traffic deaths within 30days of a crash.

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