Traffic deaths on Bay Area highways fell modestly in 2020 from the previous year, reflecting the decline in traffic during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Freeway deaths in the nine-county Bay Area dropped 9 percent from 2019, according to data provided by the California Highway Patrol.
Deaths were down about 5 percent year-to-year in the greater region, which includes Santa Cruz, Monterey and San Joaquin counties.
“You would expect that, because there were a whole lot fewer folks on the road,” said Hilary Nixon, deputy executive director for the Mineta Transportation Institute.
About 450 people died on highways in the nine-county Bay Area in 2020, versus 492 the previous year. In the 12-county region, deaths totaled 634, compared to 666 a year earlier.
The decline in fatalities might have been greater were it not for the high incidence of speeding on the highways.
Ten days after the shelter-in-place order went into effect in much of the region in March 2020, the CHP tweeted, “We are seeing a rise in motorists traveling at excessive speeds in the #bayarea.”
During just the first two days of May last year, CHP officers in the Bay Area issued 1,572 speeding citations, the agency said. Of those citations, 85 were for speeds in excess of 100 mph.
10 comments
It does make sense. Less cars on the road, less accidents. 2021 will be alot different. Traffic is back and people are getting into accidents again.
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Duh.
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Less people were on the road because of lockdown and social restrictions.
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2020 will forever skew data and statistics. But the general public is too stupid to critically think about this fact.
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That is no surprise at all. The way people drive with carless abandon and do not give a rats ass about anyone other then themselves surpised it has not increased any more.
Also the stolen car rate is out of site. With less law enforcement being given the go ahead by the current powers in control it will not get better as there is no punishment involved. Only the folks that over pay in taxes and our insurance premiums that take the hit. It is a flippin free for all for the entitlement crowd and the green team.
When we landed at SFO in late March of 2020 the freeways were empty, as was customs and the airport. No one was driving to work. A lot of people were not working. Is that what anyone want to return to?
And what’s the count including highway 4?
That’s odd: Traffic was down 90% but deaths were only down by 5 to 9%? So it was actually much more dangerous for the smaller number of drivers on the road!
These freeway fatalities data seems to not be including the freeway shootings that are on the rise so of course the death count will be lower.
We need Minimum speed limits.
Too many people Forgot how to drive, they think that they’re being extra safe by driving under the speed limit – THEY’RE NOT. All that they’re doing is creating a highway hazard as everyone has to go around their inconsiderate a**
Highway deaths decreased..? were they coded as “with” instead of “by” or “due to”Or …like we have seen with the other codes on ER sheets? So the number decreased because they didnt die from the accident but because the swab came up positive right?
Less cars on roads due to COVID, but the speeders were up. Careless driving had more room across all lanes to drive like Grand Theft Auto video game. Now that there are more law abiding drivers on the road again, expect the death tolls to increase.
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