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<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://247wallst.com/special-report/2016/07/31/the-most-and-least-dangerous-states-for-older-drivers/">http://247wallst.com/special-report/2016/07/31/the-most-and-least-dangerous-states-for-older-drivers/</a>
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The Most (and Least) Dangerous States for Older Drivers<br>
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Americans 65 years of age and older are 21% more likely to be killed
in a traffic accident than the population as a whole. While people
of this age group account for 14.5% of the total population, they
represent 17.5% of all traffic fatalities.<br>
<strong><br>
5. Idaho</strong><br>
<strong>> Traffic fatality risk for elderly vs. total pop.:</strong>
49.6% more likely<br>
<strong>> Traffic fatalities, 65 and older:</strong> 17.0 per
100,000 (11th highest)<br>
<strong>> Traffic fatalities, total pop.:</strong> 11.4 per
100,000 (24th highest)<br>
<strong>> Pct. pop. 85 and older:</strong> 1.6% (tied-11th
lowest)<br>
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<p>The difference between the likelihood of traffic fatalities among
older Americans and the entire population varies between states.
To determine where driving is the most dangerous for seniors, 24/7
Wall St. compared traffic fatality data for state residents 65
years and older to that of the state’s entire population. The
states with the widest gaps in fatality rates between these age
groups were considered the most dangerous states to drive for
seniors.</p>
<p>The most dangerous state for older Americans is Rhode Island,
where seniors are 2.2 times more likely to die in a traffic
accident than the overall state population. By contrast, seniors
in New Mexico are 38% less likely than the state’s total
population to die in a traffic accident, the safest state for
seniors in the nation.</p>
<p><span style="color:#008000;"><strong><a
href="http://247wallst.com/special-report/2016/07/30/the-most-and-least-dangerous-states-for-older-drivers/2/"
style="color:#008000;">Click here to see the most (and
least) dangerous states for older drivers.</a></strong></span></p>
<p>States with the highest overall rates of traffic fatalities —
including drivers, passengers, cyclists, and pedestrians — are not
necessarily the states that are the most dangerous for senior
drivers. Instead, the most dangerous states for Americans 65 and
older are states with the highest share of residents 85 and older.</p>
<p>Age-related vision and cognitive declines, which worsen with age,
can impair driving capabilities. However, this is not the main
contributor to seniors having a higher traffic fatality rate than
younger individuals.</p>
<p>The main contributor is the susceptibility of seniors to injury
and medical complications when involved in an accident. Drivers
who are 80-84 year olds, for example, tend to be involved in the
same number of accidents as 25-29 year olds. Yet, the 80-84 year
old drivers are nearly three times as likely to die from those
accidents.</p>
<p>Because the risk of dying from an accident increases as a senior
ages, the share of 85 and older residents is one predictor of a
state’s elderly car accident death rate. Rhode Island, for
example, where elderly residents are more than twice as likely as
the whole population to die in a car accident, is tied for the
largest share of residents 85 and older in the nation. In Alaska,
on the other hand, seniors are considerably less likely to die in
a traffic accident than the total population. This may be
partially due to the fact that only 0.8% of Alaska’s population is
85 and older, the lowest share of any state.</p>
<p>To identify the states where driving is the most dangerous for
seniors, 24/7 Wall St. compared traffic fatality rates for
residents 65 and older and for the entire state population. Data
for these rates are from the National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration and are as of 2014, the most current available.
Populations by age are from the 2014 American Consumer Survey from
the U.S. Census Bureau.</p>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="http://247wallst.com/special-report/2016/07/31/the-most-and-least-dangerous-states-for-older-drivers/">http://247wallst.com/special-report/2016/07/31/the-most-and-least-dangerous-states-for-older-drivers/</a>
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<br>
Ken<br>
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