Vehicular, motorcycle fatalities saw steep drop in 2023

AUGUSTA, Maine -- Today the Maine Bureau of Highway Safety released its preliminary data showing that the 134 fatalities that occurred on Maine roadways in 2023 was the lowest number of fatalities since there were 131 fatalities in 2014.

Prior to 2014, the state had not seen fatality numbers this low since there were 119 in 1944.

Highway Safety Director Lauren Stewart, noted, "Though this is a vast improvement over the prior several years, the Maine Bureau of Highway Safety recognizes that there is still plenty of work to be done because one life lost is one too many."

The Maine Bureau of Highway Safety is stepping up efforts by increasing their media messaging to the public about safe driving behaviors.

We are continuing to identify and work with communities that are either underserved or overrepresented in crash data," a statement from the Dept. of Safety read today. "We have also added a requirement for law enforcement agencies that are receiving certain grant funds from us to educate the public on safe driving behaviors and the risks of impaired driving, speeding, and not wearing a seatbelt."

According to the 2023 Maine Seatbelt Use Survey, 94.5 percent of motorists observed on Maine roadways were using their seat belt during the daylight hours. This is the highest observed rate thus far. However, the same cannot be said about observed seatbelt usage during the nighttime hours. That number dropped to 77.5% which was the lowest observed nighttime rate in 12 years.

In 2023, 60% of the motor vehicle occupants that were killed on Maine roads were not wearing their seatbelt. Due to this, the Maine Bureau of Highway Safety is awarding grant funding to law enforcement agencies to conduct nighttime seatbelt enforcement in order to combat this alarming trend.

One area of noted improvement in 2023 over prior years was the sharp decrease in the number of motorcycle fatalities. The 17 motorcycle fatalities were a 47% decrease from the 32 motorcycle fatalities we saw in 2022. It was also a notable improvement over 2021's 21 fatalities, 2020's 29 fatalities, 2019's 27 fatalities, and 2018's 23 fatalities. In fact, it was the lowest number of motorcycle fatalities since 2014 when we had 10 fatalities. Though there was a very high number of rainy days during the 2023 motorcycle riding season, we, along with our partners at the Maine Bureau of Motor Vehicles and Maine Department of Transportation, continued our efforts throughout the year in the area of motorcycle safety.