Two researchers say today’s high gas prices could cut auto deaths by as much as a third as driving decreases. The effect may be particularly dramatic among teenage drivers, who are more price-sensitive than adults.

A study by professors Michael Morrisey of the University of Alabama and David Grabowski of Harvard Medical School found that for every 10 percent increase in gas prices there was a 2.3 percent decline in auto deaths. For drivers aged 15 to 17 the decline was 6 percent and for ages 18 to 21 it was 3.2 percent.

The study looked at fatalities through 2006, before the latest run up in gas prices. With gas now averaging over $4 a gallon, Morrisey said he expects to see a drop of about 1,000 deaths a month.