ST. PAUL, Minn. — Traffic safety officials say Minnesota last year saw its first increase in traffic deaths since 2007.
The final crash report shows Minnesota had 395 traffic deaths in 2012. That's a 7 percent increase from 2011, when 368 deaths were recorded.
But officials say it represents a 40 percent drop in deaths from a decade ago.
Officials cite a mild winter, a slight increase in miles traveled and a jump in motorcyclist deaths in 2012 as reasons for the increase.
The 2012 fatality count is the second-lowest annual death figure since 1944 when 356 people were killed.
