How Many Children Die in Traffic Crashes Each Year?

Quick answer: 1,032 children died in traffic crashes in the United States in 2024. That was 3% of all 39,254 traffic fatalities that year. An estimated 160,850 children were injured, which means 3 children were killed and an estimated 439 injured every day.

How many children died in 2024

In 2024, 1,032 children died in traffic crashes in the United States. In this fact sheet, children means ages 14 and under. This group is distinct from young drivers ages 15–20, so there is no overlap between the two groups.

The 2024 total was up 1% from 1,023 in 2023. The 2023 figure comes from the Final File, and it was revised from an earlier Annual Report File number. The longer trend shows progress. Child deaths were down 10% from 1,144 in 2015.

Child injuries also stayed high. An estimated 160,850 children were injured in 2024, down less than 1% from 161,489 in 2023.

An average helps show what these totals mean in daily life. In 2024, an average of 3 children were killed and an estimated 439 injured every day in traffic crashes.

For a wider view of road deaths around the world, see global road death statistics. For deaths by state, see United States crash deaths by state.

Who the children who died were

Of the 1,032 children who died in 2024, 76% were occupants and 24% were nonoccupants. In numbers, that is 783 occupants and 249 nonoccupants. Occupants are people inside a vehicle. Nonoccupants are people outside a vehicle, such as people on foot or on bikes.

The breakdown by road user type was:

• 783 occupants, or 76% of child deaths
• 172 pedestrians, or 17% of child deaths
• 56 pedalcyclists, or 5% of child deaths

The remaining child deaths were other nonoccupants. Children can be at risk in many roles on the road. They can be passengers in cars, people walking to school, or children riding bikes.

Males accounted for 54% of child fatalities in 2024. That share means boys died in slightly higher numbers than girls.

Parents and carers can lower risk by choosing safe routes, teaching children to check before crossing, and making sure children use the right restraint on every trip.

Alcohol and child deaths

Alcohol-impaired driving also kills children, even when the child has not been drinking. In 2024, 221 children were killed in alcohol-impaired-driving crashes. That was 21% of all child deaths that year.

The breakdown of the 221 deaths was:

• 117 passengers of alcohol-impaired drivers, or 53% of the total
• 74 occupants of other vehicles, or 33% of the total
• 28 nonoccupants, or 13% of the total

More than half of these children were passengers of the impaired driver. That means the person who had been drinking was often the person responsible for the child in the vehicle. Other children died because an impaired driver hit the vehicle they were in, or struck them while they were outside a vehicle.

Not driving after drinking protects everyone on the road, including children who have no say in the choice.

Seat belts and child safety seats

Restraints save lives. Child safety seats reduce fatal injury by 71% for infants under 1 and by 54% for toddlers ages 1–4 in passenger cars, based on NHTSA estimates. Lap and shoulder seat belts reduce fatal-injury risk by 45% for front-seat occupants aged 5 and older in passenger cars.

Even so, many children who died were not restrained. Of 677 child passenger-vehicle occupants killed, restraint use was known for 585. Of those 585 children, 229 were unrestrained. That is 39% of the children with known restraint use.

These figures show two things at once. Restraints work, and too many children still ride without them. The right restraint depends on the age and size of the child. Infants and toddlers need child safety seats. Older children need booster seats or seat belts that fit them well.

Every child should use the right restraint on every trip, no matter how short the drive. Adults set the pattern when they wear their own seat belts too.

When child deaths happen most

Child deaths are not spread evenly through the day. The highest share of child deaths occurred from 3:00–5:59 p.m. That period accounted for 28% of child deaths in 2024.

The late afternoon is a busy time on the roads. Children are leaving school, heading to activities, or travelling home. Traffic is heavy, drivers are tired, and daylight starts to fade in some seasons. Children on foot or on bikes are more likely to be near traffic at that time.

This pattern points to practical steps. Drivers can slow down and watch for children in the late afternoon, especially near schools, parks, and homes. Children can use crossings, stay visible, and avoid running into the road. Schools and local leaders can look at safe routes, crossing guards, and slower speeds where children walk and cycle.

Safer roads, safer speeds, safer vehicles, and safer choices together can lower the toll. For the latest local reports, see today's accident reports.

How these numbers were counted

These figures come from NHTSA, Children: 2024 Data, based on the Fatality Analysis Reporting System. The 2024 figures come from the Annual Report File. The 2023 figures come from the Final File. The latest year can be revised as records are checked and completed.

Children means ages 14 and under in this fact sheet. Occupants are people inside a vehicle. Nonoccupants are people outside a vehicle. Injury figures are estimates based on police-reported crashes. Restraint figures cover cases where restraint use was known and recorded. The restraint benefit figures are NHTSA estimates for passenger cars.