ATLANTA --- As the Fourth of July weekend marks the height of vacation travel, figures just released by the state show Georgia's roads have grown safer.

The numbers of annual fatal automobile accidents in Richmond County held steady during the past three years while declining 13 percent statewide, but experts can't agree on the reasons.

Deadly wrecks fell from 1,729 in 2005 to 1,507 in 2008.

Most accidents are caused by distractions, said Sgt. Raul Fernandez, the Motorcycle Division supervisor for the Richmond County Sheriff's Office. In particular, he blamed speeding and cell phone use.

"All it takes is a split of a second, and you're in an accident," he said.

The decline in deaths could be a positive side to high gasoline prices, according to Crystal Paulk-Buchanan, a spokeswoman for the Georgia Department of Transportation.

"There is certainly anecdotal and some statistical evidence that when gas prices started increasing, people started consolidated their trips and drove less," she said.

The fatality decline also could be linked more to safety measures, such as better-designed cars and roads and increased use of seat belts, said Shene J. Reid, an epidemiologist with the Governor's Office of Highway Safety.

The rate of Georgia road fatalities per miles traveled decreased 4 percent between 2005 and 2007, the most recent statistics her agency has. In the same period, seat-belt use increased nearly 9 percent, making Georgia's usage the highest in the Southeast at 89 percent.

Ms. Reid credited the Click It or Ticket campaign.

"Consequently, by 2007, the total number of Georgia lives saved (that were) attributed to proper safety belt use during potentially fatal crashes grew to 613," she said.

The number of motorcycle fatalities also dropped -- by 11 percent just in one year, from 157 in 2007 to 139 last year. That's significant because the number of motorbikes registered in the state swelled 84 percent between 2000-06, with the number of crashes involving them soaring 97 percent and fatalities by 147 percent.

Ms. Reid noted that speed-related deaths increased 1.8 percent in 2007 from the previous year while alcohol-related fatalities rose nearly 13 percent.