Data on Speeding and Fatal Car Accidents in Texas

With more than 310,000 miles of public roads and 680,000 total lane miles, both of which are the most in the nation, Texas has the most robust road infrastructure in the country.

And because Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio have less-than-stellar public transit systems, most Texans in these cities still own vehicles, owing to the state's vast size and extensive road network. The average Texan drives more annually than the national average of 14,000 miles. In turn, Texas had many more speed-related collisions than the national average.

Victims of major car accidents may be left to deal with the physical, financial, and emotional implications. Moreover, hundreds of thousands of people across the Lone Star State are injured each year due to auto and other motor vehicle accidents.

Unfortunately, data obtained from local accidents shows that a significant portion of these occurrences may have been caused by speeding or reckless and irresponsible driving on the part of the motorists involved.

Driving while impaired by alcohol or drugs, distracted driving, and speeding are among the leading causes of the high percentage of fatal vehicle accidents that occur in Texas.

It's vital to accurately analyze the frequency of vehicle accidents in Texas and the important elements that lead to them. And to help prevent at least some of these incidents from occurring, it's essential for Texans to stay informed of the data to protect themselves on our roadways.

Key Data Behind Texas Car Accidents

In 2020, just under 40% of Texas motor vehicle accident deaths were related to speeding, a significant rise from the prior year, when roughly 30% of deaths on Texas roads were caused by speeding.

By and large, the rate of motor vehicle accidents has soared in a lot of major urban areas throughout Texas. Nevertheless, Houston has topped the state in total automobile accident injuries in recent years, clocking an average of around 55,000 injury accidents annually.

Moreover, traffic researchers say around 10 fatal vehicle accidents occur in Houston each week. Speeding is a key factor in deadly car accidents and one of the leading causes of collisions. And despite ranking as the city with the worst drivers from 2001 to 2019, the city admits that it lacks enough law enforcement to deter reckless driving.

The figures serve as a stark reminder of how dangerous Houston's roads are and the city's failure to make headway on its Vision Zero commitment to lowering the number of fatal accidents. The commitment, signed by Mayor Sylvester Turner in 2019, says that the city would seek to decrease road deaths to zero by 2030 through a variety of methods, including rethinking and rebuilding municipal routes to lower the likelihood of a fatal collision.

Where Do Most Accidents Occur in Texas?

Dallas, however, has Texas' highest rate of serious injury-causing and deadly auto accidents overall, which is not surprising given that it's in the top 10 of the most populous cities in our country. Despite being smaller than Houston and San Antonio, Dallas continues to claim one of the highest accident rates in the state.

In point of fact, 228 persons were killed on Dallas roads in the preceding year. Dallas also ranks second in the country for the number of deadly vehicle accidents. Furthermore, over the last ten years, there has been an 81% increase in traffic fatalities in Dallas.

Drunk Driving Across Texas

Sadly, drunk driving has consistently been another major cause of fatal accidents in Texas. In late 2021, the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) reported that one person was killed in a drunk driving accident every nine hours. By March 2022, that figure had risen to one person dying in an alcohol-related traffic incident every eight hours and 31 minutes in Texas.

What's more, Texas ranked fifth in the latest study of the states where drunk driving is most prevalent in June 2022, with roughly 1,490 drunk driving-related fatalities in 2020, representing a 12% surge over 2019.

Even during the pandemic year, throughout 2020, Texas still logged just under 317 drunk driving arrests per 100,000 drivers and roughly 8 to 9 drunk driving deaths per 100,000 drivers.

Speeding-Related Fatalities in Texas

Texas has the highest rate of speeding-related fatalities in the country. Excessive speed is responsible for almost one-third of all Texas highway deaths. Every year, around 25,000 speed-related accidents occur in Texas. As a result of this, there will be fewer incidents involving children.

Tragically, speeding is often a factor in fatal collisions in Texas. In another recent year alone, roughly 17,000 accidents involving automobiles traveling at excessive speeds or exceeding the speed limit occurred, per the TDOT. These collisions killed close to 400 people and injured nearly 3,400 others.

Distracted Driving in Texas

Another major cause is inattentive or distracted driving. According to DOT data from 2015, distracted driving was a factor in over 105,000 car accidents in Texas.

Approximately 2,500 of these occurrences involving reckless driving resulted in serious injuries that rendered the victims unable to function, while at least 10,000 resulted in less severe injuries. Regrettably, 422 people were killed as a consequence of these incidents.

Even while some cities have outlawed cell phone use while driving, it does not seem that this has appreciably lowered the number of accidents caused by distracted driving throughout the state.

Call the Rasansky Law Firm in Dallas

There are several causes of auto accidents in Texas, but drivers who fail to maintain a safe speed are a major culprit. In many cases, these speeding motorists cannot stop in time to avoid colliding with bicycles, other cars at crossings, pedestrians, and roadside hazards.

As a consequence, victims are more likely to sustain serious injuries in an accident. Life-threatening injuries or even death are likely to result from accidents involving speeding drivers.

Thankfully, Rasansky Law Firm's automobile accident lawyers have more than three decades of experience assisting victims of accidents caused by speeding or reckless drivers in moving on with their lives.

Our team of highly-skilled, experienced, and well-respected lawyers offers our clients dependable and effective legal counsel. We are ready to analyze the details of your accident and assess your legal path forward as soon as possible.

If you have been injured in a Texas vehicle accident and have concerns regarding your legal options in the aftermath, don't hesitate to get in touch with our Dallas-area car accident lawyers at (214) 651-6100 for a free case review.