Where do most car accidents happen?

The number of people living in the number of Arizona’s cities and towns has increased dramatically over the past half-century.

The population of Phoenix increased from just under one million to almost five million. Since the turn of the century, Tucson’s population has increased by a factor of two. Every new person who moves to Arizona creates a demand for new infrastructure, such as homes, schools, places of employment, industries that provide essential services, and, of course, roads to keep everyone connected.

Because there are millions of people using a small number of pathways every day, many of them get their routes confused. Accidents involving motor vehicles are all too common, but safe driving can virtually eliminate the risk of being involved in one. However, the information that is gathered during a car accidents happen is essential in letting people know where accidents occur the most frequently, and some of the results may surprise you.

If you were injured in a car accident, seeking the advice of a Phoenix car accident attorney may be the first step in the right direction for you to take.

Types of accidents

The data collected regarding automobile collisions takes into account a wide range of aspects, such as collisions involving cars and pedestrians, collisions involving bicycles, and other types of impacts. The participation of at least one motor vehicle is the underlying factor that links all of these incidents together. The following are some of the ways that automobiles can be at fault in accidents that occur in Arizona.

Single vehicle accident

Overcorrection is a relatively common occurrence in rural areas, and it can cause a driver to lose control of their vehicle, causing them to either drive off the road or strike something. There are no other drivers or vehicles involved in this incident.

A collision with a stationary object is the second most common type of accident that can occur in both rural and urban settings. Accidents that were caused by the weather include those that occurred as a result of sudden flooding, heavy rain or snow, or other conditions that made it difficult to safely navigate the road. Animal strikes are most common in rural areas, and they occur when a vehicle collides with a large animal, such as a deer, elk, or livestock that has gathered on the road.

Multiple vehicle collisions

• Accidents involving left turns are relatively common in urban areas, particularly at intersections.
• Accidents involving a vehicle striking the rear of another vehicle are the most common type of collision and
• account for the highest percentage of all impacts in the state of Arizona (31,868 in 2020 alone).
• One of the most dangerous kinds of car accidents is a collision that occurs head-on.
• Sideswipes are the second most common type of accident and occur when the sides of both vehicles come into
• contact with one another. One of the vehicles may be parked.
• When a vehicle collides with another object and causes damage, regardless of the nature of the collision (angle, car vs. pedestrian, or bicycle), the events are recorded.

Various causes of accidents

These factors contribute to an increased likelihood of an accident:

When traveling at higher speeds, not only do your reaction times decrease significantly, but the forces that are acting on your vehicle also increase. Even if you are involved in an accident involving only one vehicle, the rate of injuries, including fatalities, will increase as your speed increases.

The total number of automobiles: According to data from the Arizona Department of Transportation for the year 2020, multiple vehicle accidents account for 82.01 percent of all crashes. The greater the number of vehicles on the road at any given moment, the higher the risk of an accident.

Distracted driving: In recent years, drivers have been more distracted than they have ever been before as a direct result of the proliferation of personal electronic devices such as mobile phones, onboard vehicle computers, and other media systems. According to the United States Department of Transportation (US DOT), texting while driving is associated with an increased risk of being involved in an accident that is several times higher than driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, particularly among younger drivers.

Driving while intoxicated: Operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol or drugs impairs a person’s ability to react quickly or make sound choices. Intoxicated driving almost always results in drivers losing consciousness while operating a motor vehicle. Other substances, such as methamphetamine, can also contribute to hallucinations, erratic thinking, and even mental collapse, all of which turn a vehicle into a weapon when it is being driven on the roads.

Defective vehicles: If you own a car, it is your responsibility to ensure that it is in good working condition at all times for the safety of yourself, your passengers, and other drivers on the road. Because not all drivers have this perspective, you leave yourself open to the possibility that another vehicle will crash into you for a variety of reasons, such as a blown tire, broken turn signals, faulty brakes, a dirty windshield, or any of a number of other issues.

Other contributing factors to crashes

Time is a factor.

When it comes to car accidents, the time of day is another factor that needs to be taken into consideration. You may have heard that more vehicle accidents occur at different times of the day due to sun glare at sunrise or sunset, or even that night driving is more dangerous and affects the statistics. This is something that you should take into consideration when you are behind the wheel.

The data presents some information that is unexpected in relation to these concepts. A significant portion of accidents take place between the hours of 5 and 6 p.m., with the majority of these incidents taking place on Fridays. This would lend credence to the theory that the higher concentrations of drivers and vehicles on the roads during rush hour are a much more significant factor in why automobile collisions take place.

Weather conditions

According to the statistics from AZDOT 2020, the weather appears to play a role in some car accidents; however, the majority of accidents in Arizona have occurred on days with clear skies, totaling 88,940. The majority of those incidents have taken place during the day, with “lighted darkness” coming in second place with 20,224 accidents. In most cases, areas that have lighted darkness are considered to be illuminated sections of road or highway, similar to what you would find in an urban environment.

Rain and snow are less of a contributing factor, despite the fact that they do exist, because dry roads were responsible for 179,680 accidents, whereas only 6,009 occurred on wet roads. When the data collected about the weather is broken down even further, cloudy days are responsible for 6,018 accidents, and rain came in third with 2,509 incidents.

Types of roads

There are many different types of roads in Arizona, ranging from curvy mountain roads to expansive stretches of desert to urban highways and streets. In spite of the varied topography and the wide range of climates and weather conditions that can be experienced in each of these regions, the vast majority of automobile collisions take place on straight roads. One hundred seventy-six thousand three hundred sixty-four automobile accidents occurred on roads that were straight in the year 2020.

After dry roads and wet roads, which take the first and second place spots in surface conditions during accidents, dirt roads, gravel roads, and sand roads come in third as contributing factors to accidents. This suggests that dirt roads are not a significant factor in the occurrence of accidents. According to AZDOT, standing water was closer to the bottom of the list than any other type of water.

Read More: When Should You Contact a Lawyer in Arizona After a Car Accident?

Where do most car accidents happen?

There are more car accidents in areas with larger populations, and this is true regardless of the speeds involved, the weather conditions, or any other factors such as driver impairment and speeding. The metropolitan areas of Phoenix and Tucson have the highest number of reported car accidents in the state. According to the statistics, there is a correlation between a higher number of cars and an increased number of accidents. Accidents are taking place at a higher frequency in urban areas.

Urban versus Rural areas

The population of Arizona has undergone a significant shift throughout its history, moving from a widespread rural dispersion to a population that is concentrated in urban areas such as Phoenix and Tucson. The number of accidents in these areas is significantly higher than the number of accidents that occur in rural areas.

However, because of the higher speeds involved, urban accidents result in a lower number of fatalities than accidents that take place in rural areas. In the year 2020, the fatality rate for urban collisions was 12.78 percent, while the rate for rural collisions was 19.9 percent. In the year 2020, there were 6,173 collisions involving motor vehicles in transport in rural areas, and 153 people were killed.

Only in the Phoenix metropolitan area were there 71,611 collisions; in the Tucson metropolitan area, the number of collisions was 8,841, and in the surrounding area, there were 3,448. Although fatalities per capita were higher in rural areas, the rate of fatalities in the remaining states was significantly lower. Although Flagstaff was one of the larger areas that experienced car accidents, it was significantly overshadowed by these larger cities.

Driving in rural areas on highways, interstates, and other long stretches of roads typically involves higher speeds, which accounts for greater force that can overcome safety features such as airbags and crumple zones. The percentage of fatalities, on the other hand, is based on each incident, so this does not necessarily mean that driving in rural areas is more dangerous or results in more deaths.

According to the data that was collected, the number of collisions that occurred in rural areas stayed relatively stable throughout the week, while the majority of urban collisions took place during the weekdays, with the highest percentage occurring on Fridays and a significant drop occurring afterward on the weekends. Accidents and fatalities in rural areas occurred on a monthly basis throughout the entire year.

However, in urban areas throughout the state of Arizona in 2020, collisions started strong in January, dropped in April, and then gradually increased over the year. This information may have been skewed as a result of the state’s pandemic lockdowns that began in March and April. These lockdowns would have had the effect of reducing the number of drivers on city roads and highways.

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Phoenix and other urban areas

The most significant number of automobile collisions in Arizona are reported to have occurred in the state’s most populous city, Phoenix. It is the region that has been impacted by growth the most, with a sprawling metropolitan area encompassing a large jurisdiction, connected by interstates, highways, and an increasing number of subdivisions and formerly rural areas that the metro infrastructure absorbed.

It is the region that has been the most affected by growth. Next up are the regions of Pima County and Pinal County, both of which have been impacted by a significant increase in the number of new residents over the past few decades. Pinal County, on the other hand, has seen a decline in the number of fatalities, in contrast to Pima and Maricopa Counties, which have seen an increase.

When it comes to the location of the most accidents, it appears that the Phoenix metropolitan area is the epicenter of the problem. Regardless of the weather, the type of surface, or the terrain, the vast majority of accidents appear to be caused by traffic congestion, which is significant in today’s world in a city that has nearly five million people and is still growing. Second place goes to Tucson, and there are a few other growing communities in Arizona that are beginning to approach urban levels as a result of their increasing populations.

Even though there may be a higher number of fatalities as a result of accidents in rural areas, the frequency is not even close to being as common as it is in urban areas. This is due to factors such as the conditions of the roads, the remoteness of the areas, and especially the speeds at which people travel outside of urban areas. In any case, Phoenix and other major urban areas are the locations of the majority of accidents.

The concentration of so many people in one location appears to be the primary cause of accidents, given that the vast majority of collisions take place on sunny days along unobstructed roads in dry conditions. Larger numbers of people are involved in accidents involving multiple vehicles, which is the common denominator.