Traffic deaths down 5 percent so far in 2013

Deaths from motor vehicle crashes dropped in the U.S. in the first six months of the year, and both Pennsylvania and New Jersey mirrored the national trend, the National Safety Council said Thursday.

In 2013, an estimated 16,620 traffic deaths occurred from January through June, compared to 17,430 in 2012, a five percent decline.

In Pennsylvania, traffic deaths were down 14 percent from the six-month period a year earlier, from 640 in 2012 to 553 in 2013. In New Jersey, deaths were down by 10 percent, from 223 to 200.

The safety council did not speculate on the causes for the decline. - Paul Nussbaum