Traffic Fatalities Were Up 9 Percent In The First Six Months Of This Year Compared To The Same Period Last Year, Continuing A Surge In Deaths That Began Two Years Ago As The Economy Improved And Travel Picked Up, According To Preliminary Estimates Released Tuesday By The National Safety Council. An Estimated 19,100 People Were Killed On U.S. Roads From January Through June, Said The Council, A Congressionally Chartered Nonprofit That Gets Its Data From State Authorities. That’s 18 Percent More Than Two Years Ago At The Six-Month Mark. About 2.2 Million People Also Were Seriously Injured In The First Half Of This Year.