TRANSPORTATION - BTS - Bureau of Transportation Statistics

Safety on our waters has improved over the last25 years as a result of efforts by the U.S. Coast Guard(USCG), in collaboration with industry, the public,and the states. Concerted efforts are being made toimprove safety even further. The strides made in thelast 25 years and the future direction of safetyprograms are discussed in detail below for eachaspect of the maritime system.Recreational Boating: Recreational boating fatalitiespeaked at 1,466 in 1975. In response to the highnumber of fatalities that year, the USCG implementedan aggressive enforcement campaign tocrack down on boaters operating under the influenceof alcohol, along with efforts to increase the useof life jackets. As a result of these efforts, recreationalboating fatalities declined to 734 by 1999(figure 3-40). Figure 3-41 shows recreational boatingaccidents by state in 1975 and 1998.Box 3-11Growth ofRecreational BoatsToday, more people than everare spending their recreationaltime on the water, and thenumber of state-registeredrecreational boats grows annually(figure 3-42). Adding to themix of boats and recreationalvessels are thousands of personalwatercraft, more commonlyknown as jet skis. According tothe National Marine ManufacturersAssociation, an estimated106,000 personal watercraftwere sold in 1999, up from29,000 in 1987.Of the 815 reported recreationalFigure 3-40boating fatalities in 1998, 217were alcohol-related [USDOT Fatalities Involving Recreational Boating: 1975-99USCG 1999], and alcohol was2,000involved in 15 percent of all fatalboating accidents (Figure 3-43).Operating a watercraft while1,500intoxicated became a federaloffense in 1998, but the USCG is1,000seeking to tighten enforcementeven further by lowering the500blood-alcohol content level from0.10 percent to 0.08 percent in all0states (20 states already have a1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 1998 19990.08 percent blood-alcoholconcentration limit). This is the Source: U.S. Department ot Transportation, U.S. Coast Guard, Office of Investigationand Analysis, Compliance Analysis Division (Washington, DC: Various years).same standard used today formotor vehicle drivers [USDOT USCG 2000b].Number of fatalitiesWhile jet skis and other personal watercraft areinvolved in as many accidents as open motorboats,more than five times as many people die in openmotorboat accidents [USDOT USCG 1999]. Use oflife jackets by jet ski users and the reluctance ofmany boaters to wear life jackets may be thedifference. Although jet skiers are less likely todrown than motorboat passengers, they are muchmore likely to die from blunt force trauma—theprimary cause of death in personal watercraftmishaps [USDOT BTS, MARAD, and USCG 1999].Box 3-12Life JacketsThe vast majority of boatingfatalities result from factors thatcan be controlled or eliminated byindividual boaters. Simplywearing a life jacket can vastlyimprove the chances of survivinga boating accident. About 7 outof 10 boating fatalities are causedby drowning. About 90 percentof these victims were not wearinglife jackets.Source: U.S. Department of Transportation,U.S. Coast Guard, “ CampaignTargets Boating Fatalities for Elimination,”(news release), available at http://www.safeboatingcampaign.com/2000announce.htm, as of June 19, 2000.3-47