The frightening reality is that a car accident can occur on any day, in any setting, in any type of weather conditions. However, the likelihood of an accident fluctuates depending on certain factors, down to the time of day you are driving. In this article, Philadelphia car crash injury lawyer Brent Wieand examines the latest PennDOT statistics to find out what time of day has the highest risk of an auto accident in Pennsylvania. You may be surprised by the results.
PennDOT Statistics Reveal Which Times of Day Have the Most Car Crashes and Deaths
According to a 2015 report released by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT), there were more than 127,000 auto accidents last year – over one accident for every single mile of road in Pennsylvania. Sadly, these accidents collectively caused the deaths of 1,200 people, while another 80,004 were injured.
Many of these accidents shared certain factors in common. For example, speeding and alcohol use were both major accident factors, as were holiday weekends, when the roads swell with fatigued and intoxicated drivers coming and going from parties and family get-togethers.
It’s no surprise that intoxication or speeding increases the chance of an accident – but did you know that your risk of a crash is also influenced by the time of day?
The 2015 PennDOT report breaks down every hour of the day by two factors: total number of crashes, and total number of crash fatalities. You might assume these figures to be closely correlated, but in fact, many hours with similar crash counts had significantly different fatality figures. For example, a nearly identical number of crashes occurred from midnight to 1:00 A.M. and from 2:00 A.M. to 3:00 A.M., but the 2:00 A.M. to 3:00 A.M. hour had many more fatalities.
The opposite was also true in some cases. For instance, the hours from midnight to 1:00 A.M. and from 3:00 A.M. to 4:00 A.M. had the same number of fatalities, but the former had many more crashes, suggesting the crashes that occurred from 3:00 A.M. to 4:00 A.M. were typically more severe, as a car accident lawyer in Philadelphia, PA knows.
The complete list is below, and reflects the total accidents and fatalities reported at every hour of the day in Pennsylvania in 2015.
- 12:00 A.M. to 1:00 A.M.
- Total Crashes – 3,078
- Total Fatalities – 40
- 1:00 A.M. to 2:00 A.M.
- Total Crashes – 2,624
- Total Fatalities – 37
- 2:00 A.M. to 3:00 A.M.
- Total Crashes – 3,077
- Total Fatalities – 56
- 3:00 A.M. to 4:00 A.M.
- Total Crashes – 2,012
- Total Fatalities – 40
- 4:00 A.M. to 5:00 A.M.
- Total Crashes – 1,721
- Total Fatalities – 21
- 5:00 A.M. to 6:00 A.M.
- Total Crashes – 2,465
- Total Fatalities – 36
- 6:00 A.M. to 7:00 A.M.
- Total Crashes – 4,217
- Total Fatalities – 41
- 7:00 A.M. to 8:00 A.M.
- Total Crashes – 6,576
- Total Fatalities – 39
- 8:00 A.M. to 9:00 A.M.
- Total Crashes –6,393
- Total Fatalities – 33
- 9:00 A.M. to 10:00 A.M.
- Total Crashes – 5,224
- Total Fatalities – 28
- 10:00 A.M. to 11:00 A.M.
- Total Crashes – 5,227
- Total Fatalities – 38
- 11:00 A.M. to 12:00 P.M.
- Total Crashes – 5,825
- Total Fatalities – 58
- 12:00 P.M. to 1:00 P.M.
- Total Crashes – 6,727
- Total Fatalities – 53
- 1:00 P.M. to 2:00 P.M.
- Total Crashes – 6,677
- Total Fatalities – 60
- 2:00 P.M. to 3:00 P.M.
- Total Crashes – 7,512
- Total Fatalities – 53
- 3:00 P.M. to 4:00 P.M.
- Total Crashes – 9,086
- Total Fatalities – 77
- 4:00 P.M. to 5:00 P.M.
- Total Crashes – 9,331
- Total Fatalities – 58
- 5:00 P.M. to 6:00 P.M.
- Total Crashes – 9,568
- Total Fatalities – 62
- 6:00 P.M. to 7:00 P.M.
- Total Crashes – 7,113
- Total Fatalities – 65
- 7:00 P.M. to 8:00 P.M.
- Total Crashes – 5,323
- Total Fatalities – 64
- 8:00 P.M. to 9:00 P.M.
- Total Crashes – 4,674
- Total Fatalities – 73
- 9:00 P.M. to 10:00 P.M.
- Total Crashes – 4,468
- Total Fatalities – 62
- 10:00 P.M. to 11:00 P.M.
- Total Crashes – 4,038
- Total Fatalities – 66
- 11:00 P.M. to 12:00 A.M.
- Total Crashes – 3,566
- Total Fatalities – 35
Review Your PA Auto Accident Injury Claim in a Free Legal Consultation
If you or one of your family members was injured in a car accident or truck accident in Pennsylvania, get aggressive legal representation to help you fight for a settlement. You could be entitled to compensation for medical bills, lost income, and other hardships related to your accident with the help of a Philadelphia car accident lawyer. To talk about your Philadelphia personal injury claim in a free legal consultation, call the Wieand Law Firm, LLC at (888) 789-3161 as soon as possible.
*Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes. It is not legal advice and should not be used as legal advice. The Wieand Law Firm, LLC is based in Philadelphia, PA, and proud to serve clients throughout Pennsylvania and New Jersey.*
