Brian White | May 2, 2024 | Car Accidents
The Lone Star State is known for many things, including having a significant number of traffic accidents every year. According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, there were over 4,000 fatal accidents in Texas in 2021. This was more than any other state, including California, Florida, and New York.
This is not to say that all areas of Texas are equally dangerous for motorists. Texas is a big state with large metropolitan areas. While a large number of car collisions happen in places like Houston, only a small percentage of these crashes result in death. Many of the crashes that occur in these large cities result in nothing more than property damage to vehicles.
Top Five Texas Cities With the Most Auto Accidents
Using 2022 data from the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT), it is easy to identify those cities that experience the greatest overall number of traffic accidents. These cities include:
Austin
The capital of Texas experienced 12,768 total car accidents in 2022. Half of these, 6,090 in total, were property damage-only crashes. However, less than one percent of these crashes were fatal. Only 111 accidents were classified as fatal in 2022, resulting in 116 deaths.
Dallas
As you might expect, one of the largest cities in Texas is also home to one of the highest number of car accidents. In 2022, there were 33,980 traffic collisions. Of these, 212 resulted in the death of at least one person.
These fatal accidents claimed the lives of 228 people in 2022, which means that only about one-half of 1% of Dallas traffic crashes resulted in death. About 21,000 accidents resulted in property damage.
Fort Worth
In 2022, the City of Fort Worth recorded 13,401 total accidents. Of these, 7,666 resulted in property damage, but only 114 resulted in a fatality. One hundred twenty individuals lost their lives. While any loss of life is tragic, these numbers reveal that less than 1% of Fort Worth accidents are fatal.
Houston
By the raw numbers, Houston appears to be one of the most dangerous cities in Texas for drivers. There were a total of 67,386 accidents in 2022, about 5,600 per month or 185 per day. Yet less than 1% of them, or 308 total, resulted in any deaths. Those who lost their lives in accidents numbered 326.
Over 42,000 accidents in Houston were classified as property damage only.
San Antonio
Finally, San Antonio makes the list of the top five cities in Texas for car accidents because TxDOT reported 39,355 accidents in the city for all of 2022. Of these, 199 people lost their lives in 186 fatal accidents, a number which represents only 0.47 percent of all accidents in the city. Over 25,000 accidents resulted in damage to property.
Understanding How Dangerous Texas Roads Are
The raw total of accidents between these five cities is staggering and alarming. These cities alone were the site of over 166,000 traffic accidents. On average, about 14,000 collisions occurred in these cities every month in 2022. Yet, less than 1,000 of these accidents resulted in any deaths.
The data reveals that while there is an elevated risk of being involved in a collision in these large cities, there is not a disproportionate number of fatalities. Nonetheless, even a property damage accident can be traumatic, so drivers should be alert and practice safe driving habits while driving in and around these areas.
Contact a Houston Personal Injury Lawyer to Help You With Your Claim
For more information, contact the Houston personal injury law firm of Attorney Brian White Personal Injury Lawyers by calling (713) 500-5000.
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Houston, TX 77098
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