3,367 CRASHES IN
OHIO, OH
2021

Motorists comprised the vast majority of traffic casualties, with 14 individuals killed and 1,211 injured. In incidents involving vulnerable road users, 3 pedestrians were killed and 15 were injured. There were no fatalities or injuries reported for cyclists in 2021.

Crash patterns show a clear weekly and daily rhythm. Fridays saw the most crashes with 542 incidents, closely followed by Thursdays with 541. The afternoon commute is the most hazardous time, with the single hour from 3:00 PM to 3:59 PM accounting for 284 crashes. Overall, 65.5% of crashes occurred during daylight hours.

The majority of crashes were non-injury events, with 2,493 incidents (74%) classified as property-damage-only. Injury crashes accounted for 25.5% of the total, comprising 63 serious injury, 505 minor injury, and 290 possible injury collisions. There were 16 distinct fatal crashes, which resulted in a total of 17 fatalities, indicating one crash involved multiple deaths.

Severity is per crash event (most severe injury). 16 fatal crash events resulted in 17 persons killed.

A significant majority of crashes occurred in what appeared to be ideal driving conditions. Data shows that 65.5% of incidents happened in daylight, 76% on dry road surfaces, and 51.9% in clear weather. Conversely, 304 crashes occurred during rain and 201 took place in snow, indicating that adverse weather contributed to a smaller but notable portion of incidents.

Analysis of the 7,472 people involved in crashes shows the 26-34 age group was most represented, with 1,091 individuals, followed closely by the 16-20 age group with 1,075 individuals. Among the 5,720 vehicles involved, Chevrolet was the most frequent make with 937 vehicles, followed by Ford with 861 and Toyota with 448. These figures represent the makes involved, not a determination of fault or market share.

The first harmful event for most crashes occurred directly on the roadway, accounting for 2,660 incidents. However, a notable number of crashes originated off the primary travel lanes. Run-off-road events, including those on the roadside (474), shoulder (103), and median (33), collectively accounted for 610 crashes, or 18.1% of the total.

Among the 5,720 vehicles involved in crashes, the largest group (3,845 vehicles) was at locations with no traffic control device present. Crashes at signalized intersections involved 1,338 vehicles, while those at locations with stop signs involved 416 vehicles. A small number of vehicles were involved in crashes at locations with roundabouts (16) or yield signs (37).

Analysis of driver actions shows that 'Following too Close / ACDA' was the most cited contributing factor, attributed to 927 drivers. 'Failure to Yield' was the second-most common factor, noted for 522 drivers, followed by 'Drove off Road' for 515 drivers. These three factors represent the most common improper actions identified in crash reports.

In 2021, a total of 305 commercial trucks were involved in crashes in Portage County. Of these, 189 were classified as semi-tractor-trailers, while the remaining 116 were categorized as other types of commercial vehicles. These incidents represent a key area of focus due to the potential for high severity.

Crashes involving vulnerable road users and motorcyclists totaled 87 incidents. Motorcyclists were the most frequently involved group, with 58 crashes. There were 18 crashes involving pedestrians and 11 involving bicyclists, for a combined total of 29 incidents impacting vulnerable road users.

A total of 350 crashes were attributed to collisions with animals. The vast majority of these incidents, 331 crashes, involved deer. Collisions with other, unspecified animals accounted for the remaining 19 incidents.

Impairment was a factor in 190 crashes, representing 5.6% of all incidents in 2021. Alcohol was the most common factor, present in 126 crashes. Drugs were cited in 38 crashes, and a combination of alcohol and drugs was noted in 26 crashes.

While the majority of the 5,594 drivers were listed as 'Apparently Normal,' a total of 267 drivers were noted to have an adverse condition. The most common condition was 'Under the Influence of Medications / Drugs / Alcohol,' recorded for 168 drivers. Other noted conditions included fatigue or falling asleep (59 drivers), physical impairment (19 drivers), and illness (13 drivers).

Among the 5,594 drivers involved in crashes, 256 were documented as being distracted. The most common issues were 'Other distraction inside the vehicle' (107 drivers) and 'Other distraction outside the vehicle' (62 drivers). Electronic device use was explicitly cited for 65 drivers, split between 'Other activity with an electronic device' (36), 'Manually operating' a device (29), and talking on a device (9).

The majority of crashes occurred on straight road segments, with 2,333 on straight, level roads and 787 on straight grades. Roadway geometry with elevated risk, such as curves and grades, was also a factor. Crashes on curves accounted for 245 incidents (7.3% of total), while crashes on grades (both straight and curved) accounted for 912 incidents (27.1% of total).

Crash distribution was concentrated in a few key municipalities. The city of Ravenna had the highest number of crashes with 514, followed by Kent with 472 and Streetsboro with 444. Together, these three cities accounted for 1,430 crashes, representing 42.5% of the county's total for the year.

Examining the actions of the 5,720 vehicles prior to collision, the most common maneuver was 'Straight Ahead,' accounting for 3,198 vehicles (55.9%). The second most frequent pre-crash action was 'Slowing or Stopped In Traffic,' recorded for 1,075 vehicles (18.8%). Making a left turn was the third most common action, involving 470 vehicles.

The most frequent crash type was a single-vehicle incident, classified as 'Not Collision Between Two Vehicles in Transport,' which accounted for 1,291 crashes (38.3%). Among multi-vehicle crashes, rear-end collisions were the most common type, with 903 incidents representing 26.8% of all crashes. Angle collisions were the next most frequent, with 695 incidents (20.6%).

Passenger cars were the most common vehicle type involved in crashes, accounting for 2,698 of the 5,720 vehicles (47.2%). Sport Utility Vehicles were the second most common, with 1,481 units (25.9%), followed by pickup trucks with 746 units (13.0%). Commercial vehicles, including semi-tractors, single-unit trucks, and buses, were involved in 319 instances.

Of the 7,472 individuals involved in crashes, the vast majority were drivers, accounting for 5,594 people (74.9%). Vehicle occupants (passengers) were the next largest group, with 1,858 individuals (24.9%). A small but significant number of involved persons were pedestrians, accounting for 20 individuals.

Across all 7,472 people involved in crashes, 1,226 individuals sustained some level of injury, representing 16.4% of all participants. A total of 17 individuals suffered fatal injuries (0.23% of all persons). The largest group, 6,104 people (81.7%), were not injured.

Among 7,451 participants for whom safety equipment use was recorded, the majority (6,468) used a shoulder and lap belt. However, 358 individuals, or 4.8% of the total, were documented as using no safety equipment at all. An additional 94 people were noted as using only a shoulder or lap belt, rather than both.

The data shows that two-vehicle collisions were the most common type of incident, accounting for 2,050 crashes (60.9%). Single-vehicle crashes were the next most frequent, with 1,174 incidents, or 34.9% of the total. Multi-vehicle crashes involving three or more units were less common, accounting for 143 incidents (4.2%).