9,296 CRASHES IN
CONNECTICUT, CT
JULY 2015

Of the 22 total fatalities, 19 were motor vehicle occupants, 2 were pedestrians, and 1 was a cyclist. Motorists also accounted for the vast majority of injuries, with 3,085 individuals hurt. In addition to the fatalities, 91 pedestrians and 65 cyclists sustained injuries in crashes during this period.

Crash frequency peaked on Fridays, with 1,786 incidents reported, and the most common time for crashes was the 5 p.m. hour, which saw 880 collisions. A significant majority of crashes, 7,515 or approximately 80.8%, occurred during daylight hours. The afternoon commute, from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m., represented a clear peak in daily crash activity, accounting for 2,534 total incidents.

The vast majority of crashes, 74.6% (6,931 incidents), resulted in no injuries. Injury-involved crashes, including serious, minor, and possible injuries, accounted for 25.3% of the total. There were 18 separate crashes that resulted in one or more fatalities, leading to a total of 22 deaths for the month.

Severity is per crash event (most severe injury). 18 fatal crash events resulted in 22 persons killed.

Most crashes occurred in ideal driving conditions. Approximately 90.1% of incidents (8,373) happened in clear weather, and 92.0% (8,548) were on dry road surfaces. Crashes during daylight hours accounted for 80.8% (7,515) of the total. In contrast, 464 crashes were reported during rain and 658 occurred on wet roads.

Among all persons involved in crashes, the 26-34 age group was the most represented, with 3,661 individuals, followed by the 45-54 age group (3,316) and the 35-44 age group (3,277). An analysis of the 17,735 vehicles involved shows that the most frequent makes were Honda (2,067), Toyota (1,799), and Ford (1,701). These figures are based on the make information recorded for each vehicle in the crash reports.

The most crashes, 2,649 or 28.5% of the total, occurred in areas with a posted speed limit of 25 mph. While these lower-speed zones saw the highest crash volume, a greater percentage of crashes were fatal in higher-speed zones. For instance, 0.815% of crashes in 65 mph zones and 0.858% of crashes in 50 mph zones were fatal, compared to 0.076% in 25 mph zones.

Fairfield County experienced the highest number of crashes with 2,904 incidents, accounting for 31.2% of the statewide total. New Haven County followed with 2,540 crashes (27.3%), and Hartford County had 2,119 crashes (22.8%). Together, these three counties were the location for over 81% of all crashes in the state for the month.

The highest crash volumes were concentrated in the state's most populous cities. Hartford led with 616 crashes, followed by New Haven with 603 crashes. Stamford (487), Bridgeport (429), and Waterbury (405) also reported high numbers of incidents, collectively representing a significant portion of the statewide total.

Analysis of crashes where road class was specified shows that Local roads (344) and Minor Arterials (337) accounted for the highest number of incidents. Limited-access highways, including Interstates (229) and Freeways/Expressways (142), comprised a combined 371 crashes in this subset of the data. Collector roads were the site of 268 crashes.

Of the crashes where the route system was identified, 57.2% (4,942) occurred on state-maintained routes, which include State, Interstate, and US Routes. The remaining 42.8% (3,695) of crashes happened on local roads. This distinction is relevant for determining the responsible agency for roadway maintenance and safety initiatives.

Among crashes with specified roadway ownership, the overwhelming majority, 8,556 incidents, occurred on public roads. A smaller but notable number of crashes, 428 incidents or 4.8% of this subset, took place on private property such as parking lots or private driveways.

In the subset of data where the location was classified, 1,281 crashes occurred in urban areas, while 207 crashes, or 13.9%, took place in rural areas. While fewer in number, crashes in rural settings can differ in characteristics such as speed and severity from those in urban environments.

The majority of crashes, 6,349 incidents or approximately 68.6%, did not occur at an intersection. For crashes that did happen at a junction, four-way intersections were the most common location, accounting for 1,416 incidents. T-intersections were the second most frequent junction type for crashes, with 1,264 incidents reported.

Among crashes where the first harmful event was striking a fixed object, the most commonly struck objects were categorized as 'Other Fixed Object' (227), followed by guardrail faces (196) and utility poles or light supports (186). Collisions with poles and trees combined (utility poles, other poles, and standing trees) accounted for 370 of these incidents, representing 30.2% of fixed object crashes.

Passenger cars were the most common vehicle type involved in crashes, accounting for 11,263 of the vehicles recorded. Sport Utility Vehicles were the next most frequent with 3,048 vehicles. The data also includes 447 medium or heavy trucks, 227 motorcycles, and 97 buses (transit, school, and other) involved in collisions.

A majority of vehicles involved in crashes, approximately 68.8% (12,143), were at locations with no traffic control device present. Locations with a traffic control signal accounted for 22.9% (4,045) of the vehicles in crashes. Stop signs were the traffic control device present for 1,082 of the vehicles involved in collisions.

Among incidents involving motorcyclists or vulnerable road users, motorcyclists were the largest group with 219 crashes. There were 108 crashes involving pedestrians and 76 involving bicyclists. Combined, pedestrians and bicyclists accounted for 184 incidents, or 45.7% of crashes in this category.

Excluding drivers with no contributing action, the most frequently cited driver action was 'Followed Too Closely,' attributed to 2,931 drivers. The next most common actions were 'Failed to Keep in Proper Lane' (1,426 drivers) and 'Failed to Yield Right-of-Way' (896 drivers). These actions represent common factors leading to collisions.

While most drivers were recorded as 'Apparently Normal,' several hundred were noted to have a contributing condition. The most cited condition was being 'Under the Influence of Medications/Drugs/Alcohol,' reported for 275 drivers. Additionally, 161 drivers were identified as 'Asleep or Fatigued,' and 86 were described as 'Emotional.'

The most common pre-crash action for vehicles was 'Straight Ahead,' which was reported for 7,826 vehicles, or 44.1% of the total. A significant number of vehicles were either 'Stopped in Traffic' (1,981 vehicles) or 'Slowing' (1,364 vehicles) just prior to the collision. Turning left was the recorded action for 1,192 vehicles.

The most frequent point of impact on vehicles was the front, designated as 'Sector 12 (North),' which was struck in 5,093 instances, or 28.7% of cases. The second most common impact point was the rear ('Sector 6 (South)'), which was involved in 3,864 impacts (21.8%). These two areas account for the majority of initial vehicle impacts.

Among pedestrians involved in crashes where an action was recorded, 80 were determined to have taken 'No Improper Action.' However, for those with contributing actions, 'Failure to Yield Right-Of-Way' was the most common, cited in 23 cases. Other notable actions included 'In Roadway Improperly' (16 cases) and 'Dart/Dash' (13 cases).

Front-to-rear collisions were the most prevalent type of crash, accounting for 3,663 incidents or 39.4% of crashes where the manner was specified. Angle collisions were the second most common type, with 1,552 incidents (16.7%), followed by sideswipes in the same direction, with 1,263 incidents (13.6%).

Of the 23,534 people involved in crashes, the majority were drivers, accounting for 16,454 individuals (69.9%). Passengers made up the next largest group with 5,821 individuals (24.7%). Vulnerable road users, including 113 pedestrians and 77 bicyclists, constituted a smaller but significant portion of the people involved.

Out of 23,534 individuals involved in crashes, 19,365 (82.3%) reported no injuries. A total of 3,241 people sustained some level of injury, representing 13.8% of all persons involved. Fatalities accounted for 22 individuals, or approximately 0.09% of the total.

Among vehicle occupants where safety equipment use was recorded, 16,693 individuals were using a shoulder and lap belt. A total of 421 occupants were recorded as using no restraint system, representing 2.2% of this group. Additionally, various forms of child restraints, including forward-facing, rear-facing, and booster seats, were used by 686 occupants.

The vast majority of crashes, 6,995 incidents or 75.2%, involved two vehicles. Single-vehicle crashes accounted for 1,672 incidents, or 18.0% of the total. Multi-vehicle crashes involving three or more vehicles were less common, though one incident involved as many as seven vehicles.