331 Nevada Traffic Fatalities In 2018

A preliminary State Fatal Report shows the year 2018 was one of the deadliest years on Silver State highways in nearly a decade.

331 people died on Nevada roadways in 2018. The year's fatality total is up about 6 1/2 percent, which translates to 20 more lives lost, when comparing deaths to the previous year.

One of the larger factors that contributed to deaths was the amount of people who did not wear seat belts. 

Law Enforcement Liaison Scott Swain from the Office of Traffic Safety said, "we saw a 23 percent increase in unrestrained occupants dying in traffic fatalities."

While these numbers are preliminary, they are trending up.

Seat belt violations in Nevada are a secondary offense, meaning law enforcement can't pull drivers over solely for not wearing a seat belt. But the Nevada Department of Public Safety says seat belt violations should be made a primary offense in order to save lives.

"If officers were able to pull violators over for not wearing their seat belt, we would see a decrease in unrestrained fatalities," Swain said.

However, for the first time in nine years, pedestrian fatalities are down by 18 percent, and bicyclist fatalities are down by 11 percent.

"With our office we work on the 5 E's...Enforcement, education, engineering, emergency medical service and then the fifth E is everyone," Swain said.

A second report released Tuesday shows 178 of the 311 fatal crashes in 2017 involved some type of alcohol or drugs. 

In 2017, 29 traffic fatalities involved just marijuana, compared to 50 fatalities involving just alcohol. 

Eighty two fatalities in 2017 involved multiple substances, and 17 fatalities involved drugs other than marijuana or alcohol.

Data shows September as the deadliest month of the last two years; there were 33 fatalities in 2017 and 34 fatalities in 2018. That's more than one person killed per day.

In 2017 and 2018, more than two-thirds of total traffic fatalities took place in Clark County.

The Office of Traffic Safety plans to collect data like this to find trends and increase education.

Officials told 2 News that Nevada also saw an increase in population by about 4 percent; the population increase could have attributed to the increase in fatal crashes.