A statistical analysis from the National Highway Traffic Administration (NHTSA) last month contains a double dose of good news:  Traffic deaths are falling and seatbelt use is climbing. Here are some of the key numbers from the report which covers 2008:

• 37,313 The number of people killed in motor vehicle traffic accidents, the lowest total since 1961 (36,285) and a 9% decline from 2007 (41,059)
• 1.28 The number of fatalities per 100 million miles travelled, the lowest fatality rate ever recorded (the 2007 fatality rate was 1.36 per 100 million miles)
• 16 The number of states and territories where the rate of seatbelt use is 90% or higher—California, Delaware, DC, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Puerto Rico, Texas and Washington
• 3 The number of states where the rate of seatbelt use is below 70%--New Hampshire, Massachusetts and Wyoming

Not surprisingly, seatbelt use was highest in states with strict primary seatbelt use laws. Thus, for example, seatbelt use in Maine increased from 79.8% to 83% in 2008, a year after the state adopted a primary use law.

The state with the highest rate of seatbelt use: Michigan (97.2%); the state with the lowest rate: Massachusetts (66.8%).

The month with the highest number of fatalities was August (3,569); March was the least fatal month (2,797).

Source: NHTSA National Center for Statistics and Analysis, March 2009, http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/811124.PDF

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