Fatalities on American roads are at historically high levels across the country, and new research is taking a look at where the accidents are happening. Looking at data relating to fatal accidents caused by bad driving, drunk driving, and speeding, an alarming picture forms about driving conditions in Tennessee.
With 32.3 fatal crashes per 100,000 residents, Memphis is the city with the most collisions caused by bad driving in America. Based on data from the U.S. Department of Transportation, the city experienced a total of 238 fatal accidents in 2021 (the most recent year for which records are available).
That means that, despite having a smaller population, the city is well ahead of metropolises like New York and Chicago, in terms of on-road fatalities, according to analysis by Consumer Affairs. In fact, in 2021, the city was responsible for roughly one percent of accidents nationwide.
Worst Drivers Ranked
Unfortunately, Memphis wasn’t the only Tennessee city with high rates of accidents. Four other of the state’s major cities ranked among the worst in America. Knoxville was the 12th most dangerous city in America, Clarksville was the 17th, Chattanooga the 19th, and Nashville was 59th.
Dangerous driving occurred outside the state, too, though. Baton Rouge, Louisiana, experienced a rate of 20.7 fatal crashes per 100,000 residents. More alarmingly, it had the highest rate of fatal crashes due to alcohol in the country, at 10.4 per 100,000 residents. The city’s rate of fatal accidents was twice the national average.
That made the Louisiana city the second-most dangerous in America, according to Consumer Affairs. The outlet rates Albuquerque, New Mexico, Macon, Georgia, and St. Louis, Missouri, as the third, fourth, and fifth dangerous in America. Although it is not one of the top five most dangerous cities, Hesperia, California, had the highest rate of speeding-related accidents.
On the other end of the spectrum, Green bay, Wisconsin, Cary, North Carolina, Oxnard, California, Bellevue, Washington, McKinney, Texas, are rated as the five safest in America.
Although accident rates in America have stopped growing annually in 2022, they were at their highest in 16 years when they leveled off, and have continued to grow for pedestrians and other road users. The situation on America’s roads has been called a “crisis,” and the Department of Transportation has initiated a Roadway Safety Strategy to help address the problem.
