Alcohol-related traffic deaths stayed at about the same level in 2006 as 2005, but overall traffic deaths fell to a five-year low last year, the Associated Press reported July 23.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said that 42,642 people died in highway crashes in 2006, down from 43,510 in 2005, and that the rate of deaths per mile hit an all-time low.

A NHTSA spokesperson attributed the trend to increased law enforcement and safer cars. Motorcycle deaths, however, rose for the ninth year in a row -- mostly among older operators -- and now exceed the number of pedestrian deaths.