Every day, without knowing it, you and your family may be traveling through Some of the most dangerous highways in Southern California.
According to a recently published study, in a comparison of 2018 and 2022, Car accident deaths rose sharply in the stateand according to the data, many of the fatal incidents occurred on Southern California freeways.
The report published by ConsumerAffairs says that in California There was a 17% increase in deaths from car accidents from 2018 to 2022 despite the fact that the population in the state decreased during that same period.
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“During the pandemic, We saw more of those dangerous driving behaviors”This is a crisis that needs to be reversed,” Timothy Weisberg, deputy director of marketing and public affairs for the California Office of Traffic Safety, told ConsumerAffairs.
The report was released on the eve of the July 4 holiday weekend, when thousands of motorists They take their vehicles with the purpose of going out to the highways to travel with their families..
Because California’s freeways were less busy during the pandemic, caused some motorists to take advantage of the opportunity to drive at higher speedsaccording to road safety experts.
A study by the University of California at Berkeley found that fewer vehicle miles were driven in California during the first half of 2020 (during pandemic lockdowns), But the rate of serious traffic accidents in the state increased by 15%.
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The specialists said that Accidents caused by driving under the influence of alcohol also accounted for at least a quarter of deaths. related to accidents on California freeways in 2018 and 2022.
“Drinking and driving and speeding are much more prevalent in some California counties than others…on average, by county, speeding and drinking and driving were linked to around 28% and 25% of deaths, respectively, in 2018 and 2022“, ConsumerAffairs researchers said.
“Speeding is a much more common factor in fatal accidents in California’s most rural and least populated counties“, they added.
According to the study, The deadliest highway in all of California is the 5 Freeway, with 128 deaths in 2022which represents a decrease from the 150 deaths reported in 2018, the researchers found.
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As for California counties, San Bernardino was ranked as the deadliest for motorists, with a record of almost 20 deaths per 100,000 inhabitants in 2022.
This is consistent with ConsumerAffairs’ conclusion about California’s deadliest stretch of highway, which was Interstate 15 in the San Bernardino County areawhere no less than 48 people died in 2022, an increase of 15 compared to 2018.
In this classification, San Bernardino County followed by Fresno (19.5 deaths per 100,000 inhabitants)Riverside (13.9), Sacramento (13.6), Los Angeles (8.8), San Diego (8.7), Orange (7.3), Alameda (6.3), Santa Clara (5.9) and Contra Costa (5.8).
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All Southern California Counties recorded increases above those seen in 2018except San Diego County.
Of the 10 most dangerous highway stretches in the Golden State, Six are located in Southern California.
The 10 Freeway in Riverside County, ranked second, with 31 deathsaccording to the report.
Los Angeles County Freeway 10 ranked eighth, with 14 deathswhile Orange County’s 5 Freeway was the fourth deadliest, with 16 deaths.
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The stretch of the 5 Freeway in San Diego County ranked third, with 21 people dead.
The other most dangerous sections of highways They are found in central and northern California.
Total deaths that occurred in Los Angeles County in 2022 was 858including all those recorded on highways, freeways, public roads and small streets, according to ConsumerAffairs researchers.
For the report, The data was obtained from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) 2022 figures.which are the most recent available.
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As for the reasons given by NHTSA for fatal accidents, He pointed out that the main cause was excessive speed.a factor that far exceeded alcohol consumption and distracted driving.
In 2022, speeding was involved in About 31% of fatal car accidents in Californiacompared to 26% in 2018.
The report said distracted driving as a cause of a fatal crash has remained at just over 3% since 2018. However, 140 people died in California in crashes involving a distracted driver in 2021, a 27% increase from 2020, the California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS) reported.
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A 2023 OTS statewide survey found that 74% of Californians said distracted driving (texting or talking on the phone) It was his main concern in terms of road safety..
The ConsumerAffairs study focused on car accidents that occurred on highways and highlighted the number of deaths by county.
In an attempt to end this fatal trend, the California Office of Traffic Safety partnered with Caltrans to launch the Go Safely California educational program, which promotes a culture of safety on the state’s highways.
To know some Safety tips for drivers, cyclists and pedestrians, you can consult this link.
To know The full report published by ConsumerAffairs Regarding fatal accidents on California freeways, with more data on factors such as impairment and when accidents occur by hour, day and month, you can check out this link.
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