2,120 CRASHES IN
CONNECTICUT, CT
2018

Of the 13 total fatalities recorded, all were vehicle motorists. An additional 718 motorists sustained injuries. No pedestrians or cyclists were killed in 2018. However, 13 pedestrians and 2 cyclists were injured in traffic crashes during this period.

Crash frequency in Windham County shows distinct daily and weekly patterns. The data indicates that Friday was the most common day for crashes, with 365 incidents, while the afternoon commute hour of 3 p.m. was the single busiest hour with 176 crashes. Overall, a majority of crashes, 1,418 or 67%, occurred during daylight hours.

The majority of crashes, 73.4% (1,557 incidents), resulted in no injuries. Injury-involved crashes, including serious, minor, and possible injuries, accounted for 26% of the total (550 incidents). There were 13 fatal crashes, representing 0.6% of all crashes, which resulted in a total of 13 fatalities.

A substantial majority of crashes in Windham County occurred under ideal driving conditions. Specifically, 70.5% of crashes (1,495) happened on dry road surfaces, 75.3% (1,596) in clear weather, and 66.9% (1,418) during daylight hours. Crashes in adverse conditions were less frequent, with 236 incidents occurring during rain and 367 on wet roads.

Among the 4,715 individuals involved in crashes, the 26-34 age group was the most represented with 775 people, followed by the 35-44 and 45-54 age groups. An analysis of the 3,533 vehicles involved shows that Ford was the most frequent make, appearing in 504 crash records. Other common makes included Toyota (244 vehicles) and Chevrolet (231 vehicles).

The 25 mph speed zone saw the highest number of crashes, with 560 incidents, accounting for 26.4% of the total. While lower speed zones had more crashes, the percentage of crashes that were fatal increased with speed. For instance, in the 45 mph zone, which had 259 crashes, 2.32% of those crashes were fatal, a significantly higher rate than the 0.18% fatal crash rate in the 25 mph zone.

The 2,120 crashes in the county were geographically concentrated in a few key towns. The town of Windham experienced the highest number of incidents with 510 crashes, representing 24.1% of the county's total. Following Windham were Killingly with 430 crashes (20.3%) and Plainfield with 293 crashes (13.8%).

Collector roads were the site of the most crashes in Windham County, accounting for 511 incidents. Principal Arterials (437 crashes) and Minor Arterials (412 crashes) also saw significant crash volumes. Limited-access highways, including Interstates and Freeways/Expressways, collectively accounted for 309 crashes, or 14.6% of the total.

An analysis of roadway jurisdiction shows that state-maintained routes (including State, US, and Interstate routes) were the location for 1,391 crashes. This represents 67.2% of crashes on roads with a known system type. Locally maintained roads accounted for the remaining 679 crashes, or 32.8% of the total.

The vast majority of crashes occurred on public roadways, with 2,060 incidents recorded. A small fraction, 41 crashes or approximately 2%, took place on private roads, which can include locations like parking lots or private driveways.

Crashes in Windham County were more common in areas designated as urban, which accounted for 1,385 incidents. Rural areas saw 658 crashes, representing 32.2% of the total where the designation was known. This highlights that nearly one-third of all crashes occurred in rural settings.

The majority of crashes, 1,460 incidents or 68.9%, occurred at locations not at an intersection. For crashes that did happen at junctions, T-intersections were the most common type with 321 crashes, followed by four-way intersections with 291 crashes. Combined, all types of intersections accounted for 31% of total crashes.

Among single-vehicle crashes involving a fixed object, the most commonly struck object was a guardrail face, which was hit 150 times. This was followed by utility poles (109 times) and trees (103 times). Combined, collisions with trees and utility poles accounted for 212 incidents, representing 29.3% of all recorded fixed-object crashes.

Passenger cars were the most prevalent vehicle type involved in crashes, with 2,086 units recorded. Utility vehicles (612) and pickup trucks (433) were the next most common. Notably, crashes also involved 71 medium or heavy trucks, 43 motorcycles, and 12 school buses.

Analysis of traffic controls at crash locations, based on 3,528 vehicle records, shows the majority occurred where no control device was present (2,523 vehicles). A significant number also occurred at locations with traffic control signals (624 vehicles) or stop signs (316 vehicles). This indicates that most incidents happened on uncontrolled road segments rather than at controlled intersections.

In 2018, there were 60 crashes involving vulnerable road users or motorcyclists. Motorcyclists were the largest group with 41 incidents. The remaining crashes involved pedestrians (16) and bicyclists (3), with these two groups of vulnerable road users accounting for 19 incidents, or 31.7% of the total in this category.

Among drivers for whom a contributing action was cited, the most common error was failing to keep in the proper lane, attributed to 470 drivers. The second most frequent action was following too closely, noted for 441 drivers. Failing to yield the right-of-way was the third most common contributing action, recorded for 262 drivers.

While most drivers were recorded as 'Apparently Normal', 246 drivers were noted as having a condition that may have contributed to the crash. The most common of these was being under the influence of medications, drugs, or alcohol, which was recorded for 112 drivers. An additional 66 drivers were identified as being asleep or fatigued at the time of their crash.

The most common pre-crash action for vehicles was driving straight ahead, which was the case for 1,654 vehicles involved in collisions. Negotiating a curve and turning left were the next most frequent actions, each recorded for 309 vehicles. These actions represent the moments immediately preceding the crash event.

The front of the vehicle was the most common point of impact, identified as 'Sector 12 (North)' in 988 instances, or 28.2% of impacts where the location was specified. The rear of the vehicle, 'Sector 6 (South)', was the second most frequent impact point, recorded 504 times (14.4%). This suggests a high prevalence of frontal and rear-end collisions.

Of the 16 pedestrians involved in crashes, 6 were determined to have taken no improper action. For those with contributing actions, behaviors included wrong-way walking (2 pedestrians), being in the roadway improperly (2), and not being visible in dark clothing (2).

The most frequent type of collision was front-to-rear, which accounted for 536 crashes or 25.3% of the total. Angle collisions were the second most common pattern, with 406 incidents representing 19.2% of all crashes. These two types alone constitute nearly half of all multi-vehicle crashes.

Of the 4,715 people involved in crashes, the vast majority were drivers, accounting for 3,393 individuals or 71.9% of the total. Passengers made up the next largest group with 1,080 people (22.9%). A small number of pedestrians (16) and bicyclists (3) were also involved.

Among all 4,715 individuals involved in crashes, 79.5% (3,747 people) were not injured. A total of 733 people, or 15.5%, sustained some level of injury, ranging from possible to serious. Fatal injuries were recorded for 13 individuals, representing 0.28% of all persons involved.

Based on records for 4,085 vehicle occupants where restraint use was noted, the vast majority utilized safety equipment. However, 71 individuals, or 1.7% of this group, were recorded as not using any restraint system. The most common restraint type used was a shoulder and lap belt, reported for 3,637 occupants.

Two-vehicle collisions were the most common crash configuration, accounting for 1,205 incidents or 56.8% of the total. Single-vehicle crashes were also frequent, with 818 incidents making up 38.6% of all crashes. Multi-vehicle pile-ups involving three or more vehicles were less common, with 97 such incidents recorded.