Traffic deaths increased in the Lehigh Valley in 2025, even as the number of people killed in crashes statewide reached a nearly 100-year record low.
PennDOT announced Wednesday that statewide in 2025, there were 1,047 people killed in crashes, down 80 from 2024 and the lowest since record-keeping began in 1928. There were 109,515 reportable crashes, which is second-lowest on record only to 2020, when traffic was down because of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a PennDOT news release.
The decline in deaths coincided with a decline in the number of crashes; according to PennDOT, the number of fatal crashes dropped last year to 979, a record low, breaking the previous record low of 1,060 set in 2024.
While statewide numbers show a decrease in fatal crashes, however, that is not the case for the Lehigh Valley. There were 49 fatal crashes in Lehigh and Northampton counties last year, an increase from 46 in 2024. PennDOT data shows there were 31 crashes in Lehigh and 18 in Northampton.
Fifty-one people died in those crashes in the Lehigh Valley in 2025, up from 48 in 2025, according to the data.
Allentown reported 10 fatal crashes, the most of any municipality in the two counties.
The Lehigh Valley did follow the statewide trend of total reportable crashes dropping: There were 7,458 crashes between both counties in 2025, a drop from 7,696 in 2024. Lehigh County had about 270 fewer crashes; Northampton County had 35 more, according to PennDOT data.
Allentown had the most crashes out of all of the municipalities last year in both Lehigh and Northampton counties at 1,600; however that number is the lowest in the city in the last five years, PennDOT data states.
Allentown city spokesperson Chelsea Koerbler said in a statement that crashes have declined in recent years, and that city officials are continuing to build on that progress. Work includes implementing traffic calming measures like speed cushions, expanding the line-painting program, and doing intersection daylighting to improve visibility for pedestrians and drivers. That work has been done on Tilghman and Linden streets, and the city will expand it to other areas as well, she said.
Allentown has also pursued funding for traffic safety work, including $12.9 million already awarded, and nearly $14 million pending, according to the statement. Additionally, the police department is prioritizing speeding and traffic violation enforcement, she said. Koebler noted that there is a need for more enforcement tools in Pennsylvania, like radar, which municipal police officers can not use.
“As the third-largest city in the state, Allentown sees significantly more traffic volume than smaller neighboring municipalities and expanding the use of radar and allowing access to automated red light camera enforcement would help APD more effectively address speeding and reduce crashes,” the statement reads.
“We also remind residents that we all have a role to play in keeping each other safe. Slowing down and paying attention can make a big difference.”
Drivers’ behavior is the main factor in 83% of fatal crashes yearly in Pennsylvania, according to PennDOT’s release.
Impaired driving fatalities statewide dropped from 342 in 2024 to 258, which is the lowest on record, according to the release. That trend was seen in the Lehigh Valley, which went from nine impaired driving fatalities in 2024 to six last year, PennDOT data states.
Additionally, fatalities where someone was not wearing a seatbelt dropped from 311 in 2024 to 259 last year, which PennDOT said was the lowest on record. There were 15 in 2025 in the Lehigh Valley, one more than the year prior, according to PennDOT data.
However, fatalities linked to aggressive or distracted driving increased, PennDOT said.
Deaths where aggressive driving was involved have gone up 31% statewide since the record low seen in 2020, according to PennDOT. While there were only two such deaths last year in the Lehigh Valley, both in Northampton County, the lowest in that five-year timeframe, there were more aggressive driving crashes last year in the region than in any of the last few years. PennDOT recorded 521 aggressive driving crashes in 2025, a jump from 363 the year before.
Distracted driving deaths statewide reached 54 last year, up from 49 the year before. In the Lehigh Valley, there were four in 2025 and 2024. PennDOT officials said that data is underreported because of drivers’ reluctance to admit being distracted when the crash happened.