BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — The Louisiana Highway Safety Commission says traffic fatalities dropped by 29 percent between 2007 and 2013.
Lt. Col. John LeBlanc, the commission's executive director, says the state had 993 traffic fatalities in 2007, compared with 703 in 2013, a drop of almost 30 percent.
LeBlanc says the decrease stems from tougher impaired driving and seat belt laws, more robust law enforcement and public information campaigns on the causes of traffic accidents.
Roadway fatalities fell 2.9 percent from 2012 to 2013, when 651 died.
LeBlanc said in a news release Tuesday impaired driving and lack of seat belts were the chief culprits.
Bicycle and pedestrian deaths also dropped between 2012 and 2013 — 46 percent and 20 percent, respectively.