Older driver statistics describe a growing U.S. population, expanding license retention, changing driving exposure, and crash outcomes that vary by definition and age. The figures below distinguish people age 65+, licensed drivers, older-adult crash populations, and study-specific risk comparisons.
Key Older Driver Statistics
The most broadly useful figures include:
- In the United States, 55.8 million people age 65+ lived in 2021, representing 17.1% of the population.
- 49.6 million U.S. licensed drivers age 65+ were recorded in 2021.
- The share of U.S. people age 65+ holding a driver license rose from 78% in 2001 to 89% in 2021.
- A Census-based projection estimated 73.1 million U.S. residents over 65 in 2030.
- The projected 2030 share of the U.S. population over 65 was 21%.
- In 2022, 17,494,750 U.S. licensed drivers were ages 65–69.
- In 2022, 4,316,598 U.S. licensed drivers were age 85 and over.
- In 2022, 93.9% of U.S. people ages 65–69 were licensed drivers.
- In 2022, 66.6% of U.S. people age 85 and over were licensed drivers.
- The cited FHWA table reports 7,646 average annual miles per U.S. driver age 65+, with no table year displayed.
- The same table reports 4,785 average annual miles per U.S. female driver age 65+.
- About 9,100 older adults were killed in U.S. traffic crashes in 2022.
- More than 270,000 older adults were treated in U.S. emergency departments for crash injuries in 2022.
- Fatalities involving U.S. drivers age 65+ numbered 7,481 in 2021 in the NHTSA driver-count table.
- Older drivers accounted for 19% of U.S. fatal crashes in 2021 in the NHTSA trend table.
- A U.S. peer-reviewed study found fatal crashes per 100,000 licensed drivers declined 43% for drivers age 70+ versus 21% for ages 35–54 from the mid-1990s to 2018.
- In a 1994–1995 U.S. study, drivers age 85+ had 10.62 times the fatal multiple-vehicle intersection-crash risk of drivers ages 40–49.
Contents
- Older driver population and licensing growth
- Older driver data by age and sex
- Older driver miles traveled and exposure
- Older adult crash deaths and injuries
- Older driver fatal-crash trends and age-related risk
- Older driver intersection risk and safety context
Older Driver Population and Licensing Growth
The U.S. population age 65+ increased from 35.3 million in 2001 to 55.8 million in 2021. Its share of the total population also rose from 12.4% to 17.1% over those two measured years.
| Measure | 2001 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|
| U.S. population age 65+ | 35.3 million | 55.8 million |
| Share of U.S. population age 65+ | 12.4% | 17.1% |
| Licensed U.S. drivers age 65+ | 27.6 million | 49.6 million |
| People age 65+ holding a license | 78% | 89% |
Source: NHTSA, Older Drivers. The licensing figures are FHWA counts summarized by NHTSA, while the license-retention percentages are endpoint measures rather than a single-year survey estimate.
NHTSA reports a Census-based projection of 73.1 million U.S. residents over 65 in 2030, or 21% of the population. This is a forecast based on 2017 population estimates, not an observed 2030 count; the same 21% projection is retained as the headline demographic trend.
Older Driver Data by Age and Sex
FHWA Table DL-20 shows that licensed-driver counts decline across the older age bands in 2022, while license prevalence remains high through age 84. The age-85-and-over group has a lower licensing percentage than the younger older-driver groups.
| Age group, United States, 2022 | Licensed drivers | Share of age group licensed |
|---|---|---|
| 65–69 | 17,494,750 | 93.9% |
| 70–74 | 14,063,643 | 92.8% |
| 75–79 | 9,894,399 | 91.1% |
| 80–84 | 5,754,613 | 86.4% |
| 85+ | 4,316,598 | 66.6% |
Source: FHWA, Distribution of Licensed Drivers – 2022. FHWA computes the percentages using Census population estimates, and the counts come from its licensed-driver table.
Sex-specific counts also show substantial participation by both men and women. In 2022, the table recorded 8,449,069 male and 9,045,681 female licensed drivers ages 65–69; ages 70–74 included 6,728,996 male and 7,334,647 female licensed drivers; ages 75–79 included 4,711,670 male and 5,182,729 female licensed drivers.
These figures describe licensed drivers, not necessarily equal driving exposure, annual mileage, health status, or crash involvement. They should therefore be read alongside the separate mileage and outcome measures below.
Older Driver Miles Traveled and Driving Exposure
The cited FHWA age-group table reports average annual miles per driver, but the page does not display a measurement year. It should not be presented as a 2022 estimate.
| U.S. driver group | Average annual miles per driver |
|---|---|
| Ages 65+ | 7,646 |
| Male, age 65+ | 10,304 |
| Female, age 65+ | 4,785 |
| Ages 55–64 | 11,972 |
| Ages 35–54 | 15,291 |
| Ages 20–34 | 15,098 |
| Ages 16–19 | 7,624 |
| All listed ages | 13,476 |
Source: FHWA, Average Annual Miles per Driver by Age Group. The table period is stated only as published on the page, and no year is displayed.
The age-65-plus average is 7,646 miles per year in that table, compared with 11,972 for ages 55–64 and 15,291 for ages 35–54. The sex-specific figures are 10,304 miles for male drivers age 65+ and 4,785 for female drivers age 65+.
Mileage is an exposure measure, not a crash-risk rate. It does not by itself explain where people drive, what roads they use, what times they travel, or how risk changes across specific older age bands.
Older Adult Crash Deaths and Injuries
CDC uses an older-adult population framing for its 2022 crash outcomes. About 9,100 older adults were killed in U.S. traffic crashes, and more than 270,000 were treated in emergency departments for crash injuries.
The CDC summarizes those annual figures as 25 crash deaths per day and over 740 emergency-department injury treatments per day. These are rounded daily presentations, and the treatment count is not a count of unique drivers or hospital admissions.
Source: CDC, Older Adult Drivers. The older-adult crash population should not automatically be equated with licensed-driver deaths, because the definitions differ.
CDC also reports that drivers age 70+ have higher crash-death rates per 1,000 crashes than drivers ages 35–54. The cited explanation emphasizes greater injury vulnerability among older adults; the CDC page does not provide the two numeric rates in the supplied evidence.
Older Driver Fatal-Crash Trends and Age-Related Risk
NHTSA’s trend table labels fatalities involving drivers age 65+ and shows an increase from 6,446 in 2001 to 7,481 in 2021. In the same table, older drivers accounted for 11% of all fatal crashes in 2001 and 19% in 2021.
| NHTSA trend measure | 2001 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|
| Fatalities involving drivers age 65+ | 6,446 | 7,481 |
| Share of all fatal crashes involving older drivers | 11% | 19% |
Source: NHTSA, Older Drivers. NHTSA labels the table as drivers age 65+ in fatal crashes; the fatality count is not necessarily deaths of the older drivers themselves.
NHTSA separately describes 5,613 fatalities involving older drivers in 2009 as a 29-year low and gives a 2021 older-driver fatality-involvement count of 8,209 in its narrative. That 8,209 figure is a separate narrative series and should not be merged with the table’s 7,481 driver count.
A peer-reviewed U.S. study found that fatal crashes per 100,000 licensed drivers declined 43% for drivers age 70+ versus 21% for drivers ages 35–54 from the mid-1990s to 2018. The same study reported that fatal crash rates for ages 70–79 were lower than those for ages 35–54 by 2017–2018; this is a licensed-driver comparison, not a miles-driven rate.
Source: Continued trends in older driver crash involvement rates in the United States: Data through 2017–2018. The study compares historical trends and does not imply that every older age band changed in the same way.
Older Driver Intersection Risk and Safety Context
Intersection risk can differ from risk in other road situations. A peer-reviewed U.S. study of fatal crash involvement in 1994–1995 compared older drivers with drivers ages 40–49.
| Older-driver group and situation | Relative fatal-crash risk versus ages 40–49 |
|---|---|
| Ages 65–69, multiple-vehicle intersection crashes | 2.26 times |
| Ages 65–69, all non-intersection situations | 1.29 times |
| Age 85+, multiple-vehicle intersection crashes | 10.62 times |
| Age 85+, all non-intersection situations | 3.74 times |
Source: Fatal crash risk for older drivers at intersections. These are study-specific relative risks for fatal crash involvement in 1994–1995, not current national rates.
The comparison shows why “older driver” is not a single risk category. The study’s intersection measure concerns multiple-vehicle fatal crashes, while its non-intersection measure covers all non-intersection situations; neither should be substituted for a general crash rate.
Across the evidence, population growth, high license retention, lower reported mileage, crash vulnerability, and setting-specific risk describe different dimensions of older driving. Keeping the age definition, measurement period, geography, unit, and source label attached to each statistic is essential when comparing them.