ST. PAUL — Minnesota saw a more than 20 percent drop in overall traffic deaths last year thanks to a combination of first responder work, road safety infrastructure investments and focused enforcement, according to the annual Advisory Council on Traffic Safety (ACTS) report. ACTS is a coalition of Minnesota’s departments of Health, Public Safety and Transportation, along with numerous traffic safety agencies and organizations across the state.

The Advisory Council submitted its 2025 report to the Minnesota legislature on Jan. 15, detailing the results of programs focused on reducing overall traffic fatalities. The report highlights what is happening on Minnesota roads and breaks down successful traffic safety efforts and programs, and areas where more work needs to be done.

“There is no celebration until there are zero traffic fatalities on Minnesota roads. To accept anything less is to ignore the very real pain felt by 370 Minnesota families in 2025,” said Mike Hanson, director of the Minnesota Department of Public Safety’s Office of Traffic Safety (OTS) and ACTS vice chair. “What is encouraging is that more lives are being saved, and we can use this report as a tool to focus on the investments that are working.”

“Everything we do is about preventing the crashes that instantly change lives, and it takes a coordinated effort to make sure everyone makes it home safely,” said ACTS Chair Brian Sorenson. Sorenson is a state traffic engineer with the Minnesota Department of Transportation’s Office of Traffic Engineering. “Last year reinforced that there are things we can do to help save lives. Now is the time to take stock and really push forward with the lifesaving interventions that we know can reduce the risk of these crashes.”

“This year really represents the beginning of the Advisory Council’s initiatives and seeing what they can do to make transportation safer,” said ACTS Vice Chair Catherine Diamond. Diamond is the director of the Minnesota Department of Health’s Injury Prevention and Mental Health Division. “Now is the time to take what we have learned and make even more progress.”

Report findings as of Dec. 1, 2025:

• Traffic fatalities were down 20 percent.
• The 2025 count represents the fewest fatalities observed since 2019.
  • 2025 (preliminary): 370
  • 2024 (preliminary): 475
  • 2023: 402
  • 2022: 444
  • 2021: 488
  • 2020: 394
  • 2019: 364
• Adjusted to the number of vehicle miles traveled, Minnesota is the fourth safest state in the nation for traffic fatalities.
• Crashes related to the big four traffic behaviors (impaired, distraction, speed and unbelted drivers) all dropped.

Programs helping save lives

Rural High-Risk Roadways and Safe Road Zones

In 2023, the legislature approved $12 million across two programs that targeted high-risk roads. This money paid for updated infrastructure, safety features like roundabouts and rumble strips, and extra traffic enforcement. Law enforcement also worked with local high school students to create a social media campaign that encouraged safe driving.

Toward Zero Deaths (TZD) Safe Road Coalitions

Minnesota has developed TZD Safe Road Coalitions around the state for the past 20 years. These are community-based partnerships focused on local solutions for local traffic safety problems. In 2025: 

• Le Sueur County created a JOYRIDE program that provided 2,220 reliable, sober rides, preventing possible deadly impaired driving crashes.
• The Association of American Retired Persons (AARP) partnered with several coalitions to provide the CarFit program, which promotes older driver safety and mobility.

Affordable teen driving education

In 2025, every ninth-grade student in Brooklyn Center was provided with affordable ($20 or less) online education. The classes were paced to the students' needs and proved highly successful. School officials in Minneapolis and St. Cloud will also be offering online education to their students this year.

Note: Pete Hosmer, president of the Minnesota Driver and Traffic Safety Education Association and ACTS member, worked with the schools to provide these lessons. Driving schools across the state are encouraged to contact ACTS directly for more information on how they can participate with local schools.

Impact Teen Driver program

Minnesota’s Impact Teen Driver program was nationally recognized last year for its work educating teens on the importance of safe driving. As part of the program, TZD coordinators meet with students statewide, connecting them with law enforcement and traffic safety partners on topics such as driving distracted, unbelted, impaired or speeding. The program helps teens adopt safe driving behaviors, and student surveys demonstrated positive changes on safe driving actions like buckling up and following the speed limit.

About the Advisory Council on Traffic Safety

ACTS was established during the 2023 state legislative session to improve traffic safety on Minnesota roads. It is a coalition of Minnesota’s departments of Health, Public Safety and Transportation, along with numerous traffic safety agencies and organizations across the state. ACTS advises the governor, state legislators, heads of state departments and agencies on policies, programs and services affecting traffic safety. It encourages state departments and other agencies to conduct needed research on traffic safety and reviews recommendations from traffic safety work groups to propose and develop traffic safety programs around the state.

About the Minnesota Department of Public Safety
The Minnesota Department of Public Safety’s more than 2,400 employees operate programs in the areas of law enforcement, crime victim assistance, traffic safety, alcohol and gambling, emergency communications, fire safety, pipeline safety, driver licensing, vehicle registration and emergency management. DPS activity is anchored by three core principles: education, enforcement and prevention.

About the Office of Traffic Safety
The Minnesota Department of Public Safety's Office of Traffic Safety (OTS) designs, implements and coordinates federally funded traffic safety enforcement and education programs to improve driver behaviors and reduce the deaths and serious injuries that occur on Minnesota roads. These efforts form a strong foundation for the statewide Toward Zero Deaths traffic safety program. OTS also administers state funds for the motorcycle safety program, child seats for needy families program, school bus stop arm camera project and oversees the funding for the Advisory Council on Traffic Safety.