Robert Allen

Detroit Free Press

Last year was the deadliest since 2007 for drivers on Michigan roads, preliminary state data show.

Experts say an improving economy, lower gas prices and possibly increased texting and driving appear to be driving the increase in road deaths, which have also gone up nationally after a big decline during the Great Recession.

A running total of 1,021 people killed in 301,525 overall crashes in Michigan last year was released earlier this month, and numbers are expected to climb as more reports are received, said Ann Readett with the Michigan Office of Highway Safety Planning. She said the number could also decrease if, for example, a cause is determined to be a medical problem separate from the crash.

Read more:

Police: Speedster cause of 53-vehicle fatal I-96 pileup

'Very chaotic scene' on I-96 as 3 dead, 11 hurt in 40-vehicle pileup

Since dipping to a record low of 817 in 2009, the number of traffic fatalities in Michigan has increased, gradually, by about 15% during the six years that followed, according to data from Michigan State Police.

In 2007, there were 1,084 traffic fatalities.

Carol Flannagan, a researcher with the University of Michigan, said the Great Recession — with its uptick in unemployment, foreclosures and bankruptcies — caused a national decline in the number of younger, riskier drivers, especially in rural areas.

"It doesn't seem as though we're experiencing a very Michigan-specific kind of situation," she said. "Certain types of risky drivers — or driving — drops out when the economy goes bad."

A steady U.S. decline of 21% in traffic fatalities between 2007 (41,259) and 2011 (32,479) was followed by a leveling out, a slight drop then an uptick in 2015. The Great Recession, the worst decline in the U.S. economy since the Great Depression, lasted from December 2007 to June 2009, and the recovery continues.

Flannagan said that drivers younger than 25, known as an especially risky demographic on the roads, are shown to drive more during better economic times.

"When the economy gets better, those people have jobs, buy gas and drive for reasons not specifically (for) getting to a job," she said.

Daniel Blower, an associate research scientist at U-M, worked with Flannagan on the study. He said in an e-mail that a decline in gas prices since 2015 also could be making it cheaper for people to spend more time on roads.

Research from the National Safety Council indicates that texting on a smartphone while driving is also a factor causing a rise in traffic fatalities. The percentage of drivers texting or otherwise using handheld devices increased from 0.9% in 2010 to 2.2% in 2014. For drivers between ages 16 and 24, that rate jumps to 4.8%; and young women are more likely to text than men, NSC research shows.

Read more:

Wrong-way driver crash leaves 3 dead, 2 injured in downtown Detroit

Highway deaths jump; blame texting and better economic times

Flannagan said texting is a "very high-risk activity," but she doesn't think it's "responsible for the big changes that the economy can kind of produce in a short time."

Also, texting while driving is tough to track.

"We don't have good data on it," she said. "Unfortunately, we don't really know when people are texting."

While the number of traffic fatalities is increasing, it's still near its historic low in the big picture. In Michigan records dating to 1940, the number peaked at 2,487 in 1969 — more than 2.5 times the 963 people killed in 2015.

"In reality, we are making headway," Flannagan said.

She said electronic stability control mandated in new cars starting in 2009 is "incredibly effective," helping prevent rollovers and more. And other innovations are expected to further make vehicle safer.

Automakers are introducing technologies that enable parents to monitor the driving habits of their teenagers and control the volume of audio systems, but there are no options launched yet that deactivate a smartphone when a vehicle is moving.

Michigan traffic crash data

Year Fatalities Total crashes 2016 1,021* 301,525* 2015 963 297,023 2014 876 298,699 2013 951 289,061 2012 936 273,891 2011 889 284,049 2010 937 282,075 2009 871 290,978 2008 980 316,057 2007 1,084 324,174 2006 1,084 315,322 2005 1,129 350,838

*Preliminary data

Source: Michigan State Police, Office of Highway Safety Planning

Read more:

Man dies in fiery three-car crash on M-59 in Pontiac

33 cars, 4 semis involved in crash in Holly

Contact Robert Allen: rallen@freepress.com. Staff writer Greg Gardner contributed to this report.