Highway Safety

1.      Highway Expenditures per State-owned Road Mile

Definition:  This indicator represents the total amount of money spent per mile of state-owned roadway.  Roads under the jurisdiction of local governments or other agencies are excluded from the road miles.

Significance: A thorough analysis of a state’s performance in highway safety should include the level of funding designated for highway improvements and maintenance.  

HISTORICAL/TREND ANALYSIS, Total Expenditures per State-Owned Road Mile

Data reflect South Carolina (SC) average, United States (US) average, and Southeast (SE) average.  The southeast region consists of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee.

Source:  United States Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration

Selected State Rankings, 2006, (“1” represents the state with the highest expenditure per mile)

2.      State Highway Revenues per State-owned Road Mile

Definition: This indicator represents, on average, how much state revenue was received per state-owned mile. State-source revenues can include state-imposed road user fees, fuel taxes, general funds, tolls, bonds and other financial initiatives.

Significance:  The amount of revenues generated in the state per road mile is a meaningful indicator to consider as part of highway funding.

HISTORICAL/TREND ANALYSIS, State-Source Revenues per State-Owned Road Mile

Data reflect South Carolina (SC) average, United States (US) average, and Southeast (SE) average.  The southeast region consists of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee.

Source:  United States Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration

Selected State Rankings, 2006 (“1” represents the state with the highest state-generated revenue per mile)

3.  STATE ROAD MILES

Definition: This indicator represents the percentage of state-controlled road miles. This includes road miles under the jurisdiction of the state highway agency. Not included in this percentage are roads under the jurisdiction of local governments or other agencies.

Significance: A crucial component in understanding highway funding is the jurisdictional ownership of roads.

HISTORICAL/TREND ANALYSIS, Percentage of State-Controlled Roads in the Highway System

Data reflect South Carolina (SC) average, United States (US) average, and Southeast (SE) average.  The southeast region consists of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee.

Source:  United States Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration

Selected State Rankings, 2006 (“1” represents the state with the largest percent of state-controlled roads  States are ranked according to a standard competition ranking method that accounts for ties that result when two or more states have the same percentage of total road miles under state control)

4.      Mileage Fatality Rate

Definition:  This indicator represents the number of highway fatalities per 100 million vehicle-miles of travel. The number of fatalities is the total number of motor vehicle traffic fatalities that occur on public roadways. The number of fatalities includes drivers and occupants of passenger cars, motorcycles, large trucks, or pedestrians.

Significance:  The highway fatality rate is the most common measure of highway safety.

Historical/Trend Analysis, Mileage Fatality Rate

Data reflect South Carolina (SC) average, United States (US) average, and Southeast (SE) average.  The southeast region consists of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee.

Source:  U.S. Department of Transportation, Traffic Safety Facts 2006

Selected State Rankings, Mileage Fatality Rate, 2006 (“1” represents state with highest mileage fatality rate. States are ranked according to a standard competition ranking method that accounts for ties that result when two or more states have the same mileage fatality rate.)

5.      Seat belt usage rate

Definition:  This indicator shows the percentage of motorists who wear seat belts.

Significance:  Studies show that regular seat belt usage is instrumental in reducing injury in traffic accidents.

Historical/Trend Analysis, Seat Belt Usage[i]

Data reflect South Carolina (SC) average, United States (US) average, and Southeast (SE) average.  The southeast region consists of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee.

Source: National Highway Transportation Safety Administration

Selected State Rankings, Seat Belt Usage, 2006 (“1” represents the highest percentage of seat belt usage. States are ranked according to a standard competition ranking method that accounts for ties that result when two or more states have the same seat belt usage rate.)

Rev. 05/26/08