Road Injuries Caused 50.9 Million Injuries, 1.34 Million Deaths in 2023

MONDAY, Aug. 3, 2026 (HealthDay News) — In 2023, there were 50.9 million road injury incident cases and 1.34 million deaths, according to a study published online July 20 in The Lancet Public Health.

Stephanie C.C. van der Lubbe, M.D., from the National University of Singapore, and colleagues estimated the incidence, mortality, and morbidity of road injuries for 204 countries and territories from 1990 to 2023 as part of the Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study 2023. The study examined four road injury types and 47 nature-of-injury categories.

The researchers found that there were 50.9 million road injury incident cases in 2023, as well as 1.34 million deaths and 75.3 million disability-adjusted life-years globally. Among males aged 10 to 39 years, road injuries were the leading global cause of death. Age-standardized incidence and mortality decreased by 38.3 and 32.3 percent, respectively, between 1990 and 2023; wide variation in progress was seen by World Bank income group. Despite high-income countries showing the highest age-standardized incidence rates (858.1 per 100,000), mortality was about six times higher in low-income than high-income countries (43.8 versus 7.5 deaths per 100,000). Many countries achieved notable reductions in road injuries in the past decade, but others, including Ghana and the United States, saw increases.

“Road safety should be treated as a public health priority, not just a transportation issue,” coauthor Marie Ng, Ph.D., also from the National University of Singapore, said in a statement. “Reducing deaths and injuries requires moving beyond individual driver behavior and investing in systems that prevent crashes, strengthen trauma care, and implement evidence-based interventions.”

Several authors disclosed ties to the biopharmaceutical and publishing industries; one author reported patents planned, issued, or pending.

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