Oregon’s Fatal Crash Rate Continues to Increase
By Garrett Christensen on Thursday, October 6th, 2022 in More Top Stories Northeastern Oregon News
EASTERN OREGON – With the sheer volume of cars on the U.S. roadways, it’s no surprise that vehicle crashes and related incidents have become an everyday hazard. While fender-benders and side scrapes will be nothing more than periodic inconveniences to most, hundreds still lose their lives in Oregon each year from violent vehicle accidents and the number is only going up. According to the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT), the rate of fatal crashes in the state has been on a steady increase since 2011, coinciding with national increases in vehicle related deaths.
Examining ODOT’s publicly available crash statistics, the rate of fatal crashes in Oregon increased, on average, at 16.5 incidents per year between 2011 and 2020 with an average yearly number of incidents at 385. The average increase rate for total deaths is slightly higher at 19.5 additional deaths per year between 2011 and 2020 and an average yearly death count of 422. The number of fatal crashes in 2011 was 310, increasing to 460 by 2020. Total deaths increased from 331 in 2011 to 507 in 2020. Total 2020 crashes encompassing all injury severities added up to 38,141 for Oregon.
This is only examining confirmed public statistics. Information provided by ODOT Region 5 Traffic Safety Coordinator Billie-Jo Nickens indicates the death and crash rate for Oregon may be higher as of recent. According to Nickens, ODOT estimates the 2021 fatal crash number as high as 593 with a preliminary examination of 2022 placing the current number of fatal crashes around 339. Note these preliminary numbers were last examined on September 12, 2022 and are subject to change. Examining both public and provided ODOT information, only roughly 1.2% of all crashes in Oregon were fatal in 2020.
Unlike fatal crashes, serious injuries, according to Nickens, have fluctuated, ranging from a low of 1416 in 2013 to a high of 1937 in 2017. 2020 serious injuries were 1590.
Damage and fatality rates also differ greatly across Oregon, with urbanized counties having a fatal crash rate more proportionate to their overall population. Multnomah County had the highest overall fatal crash and individual fatality numbers for 2020 at 71 fatal crashes and 83 deaths. Klamath county had the highest fatal crash and death number for a county below 100,000 total population at 18 fatal crashes and deaths. Examining 2020 Northeast Oregon, Union, Baker, and Wallowa counties reported the following:
Union County:
- Fatal Crashes: 3
- Non-Fatal Crashes: 99
- Property Damage Only: 121
- Total Crashes: 223
- People Killed: 3
- People Injured: 160
Baker County:
- Fatal Crashes: 5
- Non-Fatal Crashes: 83
- Property Damage Only: 141
- Total Crashes: 229
- People Killed: 5
- People Injured: 119
Wallowa County:
- Fatal Crashes: 0
- Non-Fatal Crashes: 29
- Property Damage Only: 31
- Total Crashes: 60
Estimated 2021 Fatalities did increase slightly to 8 for Union County, and 3 for Wallowa County according to Nickens.
Though fatal crashes represent an overall small number compared to the total accidents that occur within the state each year, especially in Northeast Oregon, the largely steady increase in fatalities when compared to a relatively consistent non-fatal injury rate may be concerning. The exact reasoning for the increased crash rate is difficult to pin down, though there are some major outliers. ODOT’s public information lists the top 10 driver errors for 2020 as:
- Failed to avoid stopped or parked vehicle ahead
- Failure to yield right-of-way
- Ran off Road
- Driving too fast for conditions (not exceeding posted speed)
- Inattention
- Failed to maintain lane
- Left turn in front of oncoming traffic
- Disregarded traffic signal
- Following too closely
- Failed to Negotiate a Curve
Both bicyclists and pedestrians were noted as having “Inattention” and “Failure to yield” under notable errors as well. Of the 460 fatal crashes in 2020, the top three types were “fixed/other” at 150 and “head-on” and “Pedestrian” at 76 each. Statistics provided by Nickens offer further insight. Note that the following information refers to combined fatalities and injuries and that incidents may count toward more than one category.
- Speed- 533
- Alcohol- 414,
- drugs- 326
- driver distraction- 228.
Roadway departures were also listed factors in 948 incidents for 2020 and 1016 for 2019. Injuries and fatalities attributed to bicyclists were relatively low at 59 for 2020.
In comparison to national fatal crash rates, Oregon is not unique. A May 17 report from the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) Lists that only five U.S. States (including the district of Columbia and Puerto Rico) had a decrease in fatal crashes from 2020 to 2021, these being Maine, Maryland, Nebraska, Wisconsin and Wyoming. Rhode Island maintained the same number. Puerto Rico saw the largest percentage increase at 39% (242 fatal crashes to 337) while Texas saw the largest numerical increase at 699 additional fatal crashes (3,874 to 4,573). Within the May 17 report, the NHTSA stated:
“NHTSA projects that an estimated 42,915 people died in motor vehicle traffic crashes last year, a 10.5% increase from the 38,824 fatalities in 2020. The projection is the highest number of fatalities since 2005 and the largest annual percentage increase in the Fatality Analysis Reporting System’s history.”
Again, it’s difficult to identify exactly what’s causing the increase volume of fatal crashes given all potential factors involved. The Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA), a multi-agency non-profit focusing on roadway safety, emphasized the need to practice speed safety and enforce speed limits in a July 19 Article sighting a NHTSA report listing 11,780 persons killed in the U.S. from speeding related accidents in 2020, but this is only one area of focus. As far solutions go, the U.S. Department of transportation unveiled its new National Roadway Safety Strategy in January of this year, which emphasizes the “Safe System Approach.”
ODOT Public sources can be found at: Oregon Department of Transportation : Crash Statistics & Reports : Data & Maps : State of Oregon
Additional information from ODOT, USDT, NHSTA and GHSA sources, including those used in research of this article, can be found here.
