Missouri is a state of geographic variety. From the arching Ozark Mountains to the Mississippi and Missouri river valleys to the thousands of acres of forest lands, the State's 69,000 square miles are a study in diversity.

Additionally, the State's cities and towns are just as diverse. St. Louis and Kansas City rank as the largest cities in the state, with more than 1 million people living in each of the generally urban, metropolitan areas. Conversely, numerous small, rural towns are scattered around the State, sometimes with populations less than two dozen.

While approximately 69 percent of Missouri's 5.2 million residents live in urban areas, about 31 percent reside in rural areas. In fact, Missouri ranks second in the nation in the number of active farms with about 106,000.

With the larger percentage of residents living in urban areas, it's no surprise approximately 59 percent of the 15–18 year old drivers involved in 1995–1999 traffic crashes were on roads in urban regions of the State. About 41 percent of the teen drivers were on roads in rural areas.

However, the situation is reversed when considering the number of teen drivers in 1995–1999 fatal collisions. During that time period, approximately 80 percent of the teen motorists in fatal traffic crashes were driving on roads in rural areas, while the remaining 20 percent were in fatal crashes in urban areas.

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