After years of decline, federal officials have seen an uptick in car crash fatalities -- a trend that experts say is due to the increased number of drivers using their cell phones while behind the wheel.
A report from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration shows a 10.4 percent increase in traffic-related deaths, rising to 17,775 during the first six months of 2016 compared to the same time last year.
The national trend has led to a number of advocacy groups speaking out against cell phone use while driving, considered one of the main causes in distracted driving accidents, and sparked a U.S. Department of Transportation campaign to raise awareness.
"Scrolling through song lists on a cell phone, or texting while driving is not just irresponsible, it can have tragic consequences," U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said in a press release earlier this year announcing April as national Distracted Driving Awareness Month.
It has also sparked a "Road to Zero" initiative by the agency to eliminate all fatalities on the road.
Fatalities have increased over seven consecutive quarters, according to preliminary data from the Federal Highway Administration.
The head of the NHTSA, Mark R. Rosekind, referred to the statistics as a "crisis" in a recent interview with the New York Times, and experts say the issue has been fueled by internet innovation among car makers, which allow drivers and passengers to more easily utilize apps.
Automakers have started to take steps to create functions to prevent distracted driving. However, those newer models are a low percentage of cars on the road. The U.S. DOT issued recommendations for "less distracting" features in 2012.
The fatality rate per 100 million vehicle miles traveled was 1.12, which was the highest rate since 2009 at 1.13. In the first six months of this year, the total of miles driven nationwide rose to 1.53 trillion, a 3.3 percent or 50.5 billion-mile increase from last year.
The NHTSA says the first quarter has historically shown largest percentage of increase year-over-year, but the remaining quarters steadily decline.
The agency's analysis uses data from multiple sources, including NHTSA's Fatality Analysis Reporting System, FastFARS Monthly Fatality Counts and FHWA's VMT estimates.
Craig McCarthy may be reached at CMcCarthy@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @createcraig and on Facebook here. Find NJ.com on Facebook.