WASHINGTON, D.C. — Transportation deaths in the U.S. decreased by almost 10 percent in 2008 compared to ’07, according to preliminary figures released by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).

This marks the third consecutive year of declining transportation fatalities, the agency reported.

The new data indicate that total fatalities in all transportation modes fell by almost 4,000, from 43,384 in ’07 to 39,397 in ’08. Along with a significant reduction in highway fatalities, rail and pipeline deaths also decreased, but fatalities in the aviation and marine modes rose slightly.

Highway fatalities, which account for over 94 percent of all transportation deaths, fell by 3,998 (from 41,259 to 37,261).

Fatalities in the category of bus/motorcoach account for only about 0.2 percent of all highway fatalities. There were 67 bus/motorcoach fatalities in ’08, up from 36 in ’07. An NTSB spokesman said that the agency did not have those numbers broken up by type of bus, so it was not clear how many were school bus fatalities.

A table of the ’08 and ’07 fatalities by transportation mode is available here.