Fatal Crashes Only
This report covers fatal crashes only, from the NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System — the federal census of every crash on a US public road that killed someone within 30 days. It does not include injury or property-damage-only crashes, and its totals are not comparable with the all-severity crash reports published elsewhere on this site.
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YEAR-OVER-YEAR CRASH REPORT · CHICAGO, ILLINOIS · 2023
Purpose: Machine-readable JSON endpoint for AI agents, LLMs, researchers, and programmatic consumers. Returns all underlying crash data and AI-generated commentary without HTML.
Authentication: None required. Public endpoint.
GET: https://thatcarhitme.com/api/crash-data/reports/data/illinois/fatal/chicago/2023-annual-report
Yearly Traffic Safety Analysis
159 CRASHES IN
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS
2023
In 2023, Chicago recorded 159 fatal crashes, a decrease of 8.09% compared to 173 fatal crashes in 2022. Total fatalities also decreased by 13.02%, from 192 in 2022 to 167 in 2023. The most notable shift was a significant decrease in fatal crashes involving motorcycles, which fell from 19 in 2022 to 9 in 2023.
159
▼ -8.1%was 173
Total Crash Events
167
▼ -13.0%was 192
Persons Killed
140
▲ 6.9%was 131
Persons Injured
39
▼ -7.1%was 42
Hit-and-Run Crashes
Note: "Persons Killed" (167) counts individual fatalities across all crash events. "Fatal" in the severity table below (159) counts crash events where at least one fatality occurred. A single crash can result in multiple fatalities.
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Aggregate counts from crash, person, and vehicle records
Trend Summary
Fatal crashes in Chicago decreased by 8.09% year-over-year, from 173 fatal crashes in 2022 to 159 in 2023. Concurrently, total fatalities saw a more substantial decline of 13.02%, decreasing from 192 in 2022 to 167 in 2023, indicating a positive trend in traffic safety outcomes.
39
Hit-and-Run Crashes — 2023
▼ -7.1% vs prior (42)
The number of fatal hit-and-run crashes decreased slightly from 42 in 2022 to 39 in 2023. Despite this decrease in count, the hit-and-run rate as a percentage of total fatal crashes saw a minor increase from 24.3% in 2022 to 24.5% in 2023.
Vulnerable Road User Casualties
51
Pedestrians Killed
7
Cyclists Killed
105
Motorists Killed
4
Other Killed
2
Pedestrians Injured
0
Cyclists Injured
138
Motorists Injured
0
Other Injured
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Mode classified from person records (driver/passenger → motorist; pedestrian; bicyclist → cyclist; in-line skater / unspecified → other)
When Crashes Happen
Both 2022 and 2023 saw Sunday as the peak day for fatal crashes, with 35 in 2022 and 29 in 2023. The peak hour for fatal crashes shifted from 1 AM in 2022 (18 crashes) to 2 AM in 2023 (15 crashes), suggesting a slight change in the timing of peak crash activity.
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Crash date field aggregated by weekday
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Crash time field aggregated by hour (0-23)
Road & Environmental Conditions
Fatal crashes occurring in clear weather conditions decreased from 151 in 2022 to 131 in 2023, while those in rainy conditions increased from 12 to 19. Crashes during 'Dark - Lighted' conditions decreased from 99 to 89, but fatal crashes in 'Dark - Not Lighted' conditions increased from 8 in 2022 to 16 in 2023.
Weather
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Weather condition at time of crash
Lighting
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Lighting condition field
Vehicles & Demographics
The age distribution of persons involved in fatal crashes saw shifts, with a decrease in the 0-15 age group (from 32 to 17) and the 55-64 age group (from 55 to 36), while the 26-34 age group increased from 73 to 92. Honda vehicles, which were the top make involved in 2022 (28), saw a decrease to 13 in 2023, with Chevrolet becoming the top make in 2023 (24).
Top Vehicle Makes (245 vehicles)
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Vehicle unit records
54 persons with unknown or unrecorded age excluded from age chart.
Sex Distribution (414 persons with recorded sex)
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Person-level records linked to crash events
Speed Limit Zones
Fatal crashes in the 30 mph speed zone significantly increased from 25 in 2022 to 59 in 2023. Conversely, fatal crashes in the 55 mph speed zone decreased from 29 in 2022 to 21 in 2023. There were also increases in fatal crashes across 25 mph, 35 mph, 40 mph, and 45 mph zones.
Fatal crashes by zone: 20 mph: 2 of 2 (100%) · 25 mph: 5 of 5 (100%) · 30 mph: 59 of 59 (100%) · 35 mph: 10 of 10 (100%) · 40 mph: 5 of 5 (100%) · 45 mph: 9 of 9 (100%) · 55 mph: 21 of 21 (100%)
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Posted speed limit at crash location
Manner of Collision
The dominant manner of collision in both periods was 'The First Harmful Event was Not a Collision with a Motor Vehicle in Transport,' decreasing from 117 in 2022 to 103 in 2023. Angle collisions also decreased from 38 to 30, while Front-to-Front collisions increased from 4 to 10.
Manner of Collision
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Crash-level records
Vehicle Type
The most common vehicle body type involved in fatal crashes remained 4-door sedans, decreasing slightly from 87 in 2022 to 84 in 2023. A notable decrease was observed in Two Wheel Motorcycles, which fell from 19 in 2022 to 9 in 2023, while Large utility vehicles increased from 14 to 20.
Vehicle Type
Showing top 9 of 24 reported. 15 additional (35 total) not shown: Truck-tractor (Cab only, or with any number of trailing unit; any weight), Unknown body type, Minivan (Chrysler Town and Country, Caravan, Grand Caravan, Voyager, Voyager, Honda-Odyssey, ...), Single-unit straight truck or Cab-Chassis (GVWR range 10,001 to 19,500 lbs.), Large Van-Includes van-based buses (B150-B350, Sportsman, Royal Maxiwagon, Ram, Tradesman,...), Utility Vehicle, Unknown body type, Motor Scooter, Sedan/Hardtop, number of doors unknown, ATV/ATC [All-Terrain Cycle], Unknown light vehicle type (automobile,utility vehicle, van, or light truck), 3-door/2-door hatchback, Unenclosed Three Wheel Motorcycle / Unenclosed Autocycle (1 Rear Wheel), Step van (GVWR greater than 10,000 lbs.), Convertible(excludes sun-roof,t-bar), Single-unit straight truck or Cab-Chassis (GVWR greater than 26,000 lbs.).
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Vehicle unit records
Roadway Functional Class
In 2023, Major Collector and Other Principal Arterial roadways each accounted for 41 fatal crashes, an increase from 34 and 37 respectively in 2022. Fatal crashes on Interstates decreased from 32 in 2022 to 25 in 2023, and on Local roadways from 24 to 15.
Roadway Functional Class
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Crash-level records
Roadway Ownership
State Highway Agencies continued to oversee the most fatal crashes, decreasing slightly from 87 in 2022 to 83 in 2023. Fatal crashes on roadways owned by City or Municipal Highway Agencies decreased from 80 to 68, while those on County Highway Agency roads increased from 2 to 7.
Roadway Ownership
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Crash-level records
Person Type
Drivers remained the most frequently involved person type in fatal crashes, decreasing from 260 in 2022 to 244 in 2023. Pedestrian involvement decreased from 60 to 53, and bicyclists from 11 to 7, while passenger involvement increased from 128 to 139.
Person Type
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Crash-level records
Person Injury Severity
The number of fatal injuries (K) decreased from 192 in 2022 to 167 in 2023. Conversely, serious injuries (A) increased from 34 to 46, and possible injuries (C) increased from 14 to 23, indicating a shift in the distribution of non-fatal injury severities.
Person Injury Severity
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Crash-level records
Occupant Safety Equipment
The number of persons reported using Shoulder and Lap Belts decreased from 107 in 2022 to 81 in 2023. Similarly, the number of persons reported as using 'None Used/Not Applicable' safety equipment decreased from 60 in 2022 to 45 in 2023.
Occupant Safety Equipment
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Person-level records linked to crash events
Point of Impact
The 12 Clock Point (front impact) remained the dominant area of impact, increasing from 108 instances in 2022 to 116 in 2023. Impacts at the 9 Clock Point decreased from 18 to 12, while impacts at the 1 Clock Point increased from 14 to 19.
Point of Impact
"Other" combines 11 smaller categories (38 records): 5 Clock Point (9), 10 Clock Point (7), Left (4), 2 Clock Point (4), 8 Clock Point (4), 7 Clock Point (3), Left-Front Side (2), Right (2), 4 Clock Point (1), Right-Back Side (1), Right-Front Side (1).
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Vehicle unit records
Vehicles Per Crash
Single-vehicle fatal crashes decreased from 95 in 2022 to 85 in 2023. Two-vehicle crashes also saw a slight decrease from 55 to 54, while crashes involving four vehicles decreased from 6 to 4.
Vehicles Per Crash
Source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · Federal fatal-crash census · 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31 · Crash-level records
Data Sources & Methodology
Primary Data Source
All crash data in this report is sourced from NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes), accessed programmatically via the NHTSA FARS Open Data API (SODA). This dataset contains official police-reported motor vehicle traffic crash records maintained by the reporting jurisdiction's law enforcement agency. Records are published to the open data portal by the municipality and are subject to the portal's terms of use.
Data Retrieval
- Access method: NHTSA FARS Open Data API (SoQL queries)
- Data format: Structured JSON via REST API
- Record types queried: Crash events, person records, and vehicle unit records
- Date filter applied: 2023-01-01 through 2023-12-31
- Report generated: August 5, 2026
Data Coverage
- Reporting period: 2023-01-01 through 2023-12-31 (365 days)
- Geographic scope: Chicago, Illinois
- Total crash records analyzed: 159
- Total persons involved: 450
- Total vehicles involved: 245
Analytical Methodology
- Severity classification: Uses the KABCO injury scale (K=Fatal, A=Incapacitating injury, B=Non-incapacitating injury, C=Possible injury, O=No injury/property damage only), the standard classification in U.S. Model Minimum Uniform Crash Criteria (MMUCC). Severity is assigned per crash event based on the most severe injury in that crash. A single fatal crash (K) may involve multiple fatalities; therefore the "Persons Killed" count in the headline KPIs may differ from the "Fatal" crash count in the severity breakdown.
- Contributing factors: Reflect the officer-determined primary contributory cause recorded at the time of the crash report. These are preliminary determinations and may not reflect final investigation findings.
- Hit-and-run classification: Based on the hit-and-run indicator field in the official crash report, as determined by the responding officer at the scene.
- Temporal analysis: Day-of-week and hour-of-day distributions are computed from the crash date/time timestamp in each record.
- Demographics: Age and sex distributions are drawn from person-level records linked to each crash event. A single crash may involve multiple persons.
- Vehicle data: Make information is drawn from vehicle unit records linked to each crash event.
- AI commentary: Narrative sections are generated by Google Gemini (large language model) based on the structured data. Commentary is descriptive, not predictive, and should not be interpreted as expert opinion.
Limitations & Disclaimers
- Only crashes reported to and documented by law enforcement are included. Minor incidents, unreported crashes, and near-misses are not captured in this dataset.
- Data reflects conditions at the time of the initial police report and may be subject to subsequent corrections, reclassifications, or supplements by the reporting agency.
- Open data portal records may experience a publication lag - recently occurring crashes may not yet appear in the dataset at the time of report generation.
- AI-generated commentary is produced by a large language model and is intended to highlight patterns in the data. It does not constitute legal, medical, or professional analysis.
- Percentages are calculated from reported data and are subject to rounding.
Non-Affiliation Disclosure
This report is produced independently by ThatCarHitMe.com (Injuria.ai). It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or produced in partnership with any law enforcement agency, municipal government, state department of transportation, or the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Data is sourced from publicly available government open data portals.
Data License
The underlying crash data is provided under the municipality's Open Data Terms of Use and is made available to the public for unrestricted use. This analysis and report is © 2026 Injuria.ai and may be cited with attribution using the suggested citation below.
Corrections & Feedback
If you believe any data in this report is inaccurate or have questions about our methodology, please contact: data@injuria.ai. We are committed to accuracy and will issue corrections promptly.
Suggested Citation
ThatCarHitMe.com (Injuria.ai). "Chicago, Illinois Crash Intelligence Report: 2023." Published August 5, 2026. Reporting period: 2023-01-01 to 2023-12-31. Data source: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes), NHTSA FARS Open Data. Available at: https://thatcarhitme.com/crash-data/illinois/fatal/chicago/2023-annual-report
About the Publisher
ThatCarHitMe.com is a crash data intelligence platform developed by Injuria.ai, a legal technology company specializing in traffic safety analytics. We aggregate and analyze publicly available government crash data to produce structured intelligence reports for communities, researchers, journalists, and legal professionals. Our reports combine programmatic data retrieval from official open data portals with AI-assisted narrative analysis.
Questions about this report's data or methodology: data@injuria.ai
ThatCarHitMe.com · An Injuria.ai Company
ThatCarHitMe.com
An Injuria.ai Company
Crash Data Intelligence
Data: NHTSA FARS (Fatal Crashes) · NHTSA FARS
Period: 2023-01-01 – 2023-12-31
Generated: August 5, 2026 · All rights reserved
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