Police data show this year's Bon summer holiday period was the safest in terms of the number of traffic deaths.
The death toll came to 93, down by nine from a year before, falling below 100 for the first time since records began in 1970, the National Police Agency said Tuesday.
But an NPA official attributed the least deaths to the rough weather caused by Typhoon Halong, the 11th of the year, which may have prevented many people from going outside, thus reducing the risk of becoming involved in traffic accidents.
According to the NPA, a total of 13,583 cases of traffic accidents occurred during the 10-day period through Monday, down by 1,378, or 9.2 percent, from last year. The number of people injured came to 17,579, down by 1,884, or 9.7 percent.
By prefecture, eight people died in Saitama, followed by seven in Aichi and five in Hokkaido, Fukushima, Kanagawa, Nagano, respectively.
There were no deaths in 10 prefectures, the NPA said.