
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: TUESDAY, January 4, 1994                   TAG: 9401040097
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: C4   EDITION: STATE 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE: RICHMOND                                 LENGTH: Short

RISE IN TRAFFIC FATALITIES BLAMED ON MORE TRAVEL

Increased travel caused the number of traffic fatalities in Virginia to rise by 41 to 868 last year, a state official said.

William H. Leighty, the Department of Motor Vehicles' deputy commissioner for transportation safety, said preliminary figures indicate travel last year was up more than 4 percent from 1992.

Of the 1993 deaths, 113 victims were pedestrians, compared with 90 in 1992.

On the positive side, the Virginia Department of Transportation estimates that seat belt use is about 66 percent - up 4 percentage points from 1992. Also, the 1993 figures show a 21 percent decline in fatalities among people ages 16 to 20.

Traffic deaths nationally declined in 1992, the latest year for which figures are available, to the lowest number in 30 years - 39,235. - Associated Press

Keywords:
FATALITY

Memo: shorter version ran in the Metro edition.

by CNB