I haven't read *all* of these posts, so hopefully
I'm not repeating someone, but your linked report
says this:

"Covers only accidents occurring on the road. Data are estimated.
Year-to-year
comparisons should be made with caution."

Records are public. Why do they have to estimate?
Why didn't they just collect accident reports? They
don't say. As at least one person noted, drunk driving
is almost certainly down since 1990. Cars are better
made, especially brakes. An increasing number of states
ban handheld devices.

I've had two accidents in about the last 12 years.
One was a man talking on a cellphone who veered into
my lane. The other was a young man who plowed into
my pickup, which was parked on a quiet, straight street.
He was amazed he had hit me. Cellphone? Probably,
but I'm not certain. He was in the car alone in late
afternoon, so it wasn't "partying".

I've had many close calls. I can often tell when someone
in front of me is on the phone because their driving
doesn't correspond to conditions. Their speed and braking
is erratic. Cellphones have also created a problem of
very few people signaling. They simply don't have a hand
free to do it!

So how do we figure in the increased defensive driving
on the part of people who are paying attention? To a great
extent, non-phoners are doing the work for phoners. I find
driving to be more strenuous than it used to be. I have
to constantly be vigilant for lane wanderers, non-signalers
and general out-to-lunchers. Those people are all depending
on others to be paying attention.

It would be interesting to also see figures for pedestrians.
How many injuries walking into trees and cars while phoning?
Last week I was heading down into the subway as a young
woman strolled down the middle of the stairs, gabbing away,
not holding the railing. I said excuse me, then "on your left".
I was afraid she might step to the left as I passed and send
one or both of us down the stairs. She was simply *not where
she was*. Finally I raised my voice and said "wake up!". That
worked. I listened to her indignant protests fade into the
distance as I headed for the train. At least no one fell down
the stairs. (Excuse me?! How dare you! blah, blah, blah...)
And who knows, maybe she'll pay attention a bit more in the
future. But the incident highlights another disturbing trend:
People are increasingly uncomfortable simply being where
they are. Many people simply don't expect to have to relate
to the world around them. They're offended by it! It's not
only a danger and a mild form of mental illness; it's also a
growing social problem. I find people increasingly just walk into
me on sidewalks. I asked a blind friend about his experience.
Yes, more and more people are walking into him, as he walks
city streets with a guide dog!

While we're at it, I'm curious how many accidents are
caused by ridiculous flashing light overkill on emergency
vehicles. Police and firefighters just can't seem to resist
the childish thrill of adding yet another light. Police cars
used to have a blue "bubble gum machine" on top. It
worked fine. Now they have dozens of flashing lights in
every color. The problem: It's impossible to tell where an
emergency vehicle is going. Even if they use turn signals,
there's no time to figure out which lights on this high-speed,
psychedelic Christmas tree are signalling.