People aged over 65 accounted for a record 42.6 percent of traffic fatalities in Japan last year, the National Police Agency said Thursday.
The number of deaths in the age group was 2,924 out of a total death toll of 6,871, a figure that fell below the 7,000 line for the first time in 49 years.
The number of people aged 65 and over dying in traffic accidents had been on a downtrend since 2002 after being almost unchanged from the peak year in 1995. The record rate was recorded as that for other age groups fell.
The rate last year was more than double the percentage of people aged 65 and older in the total population -- 20.0 percent.
Among the people in the over-65 segment killed last year, 1,372 were pedestrians and 704 car drivers.
The fatality toll only includes people who die within 24 hours of an accident.