Counties with the most motor vehicle accident fatalities in California

Driving is a way of life for most Americans, and we're hitting the road more than ever. In 2024, people drove 3.28 trillion miles, an all-time high. However, the more people drive, the more opportunities there are for getting into a vehicle accident.

Nationwide, there were about 6.15 million police-reported traffic crashes in 2023, a small percentage of which resulted in fatalities. In 2023, there were 37,654 fatal crashes, resulting in 40,901 deaths. More simply put, that's 1.26 fatalities for every 100 million vehicle miles traveled.

The number of accidents and fatalities has trended downward after a COVID-19 pandemic spike. Yet, the fatality rate is still relatively high compared to a decade earlier. In 2014, there were just 1.08 fatalities per 100 million miles, the lowest rate in the last 30 years.

Speeding, impaired driving, distractions, and not wearing seatbelts all contribute to unfortunate deaths. Day and time can also be a factor. More fatal crashes happen during the weekend, especially at night. The wee hours of Sunday morning, Saturday night, and Friday night are the three worst times of day for fatal crashes. Where you're driving can also be a factor in the likelihood of being involved in a crash.

Citing data from the Fatality Analysis Reporting System, compiled by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Stacker identified the counties in California that had the most fatalities from motor vehicle crashes in 2023, the latest year for which data was available. The number of accident fatalities is ranked by the number of deaths per 100,000 people, with the raw number functioning as a tiebreaker. The analysis only looked at counties with at least five deaths during 2023. Additional data is included on pedestrian, bicyclist, and drunk-driving-related deaths. In counties where at least five fatalities happened on the same street or interstate, the road with the most deaths is also included.

Read on to see the counties with the most fatal traffic accidents in California.

#25. Stanislaus County, California
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 15.5 per 100K people (86 deaths)
- 30 pedestrian deaths
- 3 bicyclist deaths
- 29 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: SR-99 (10 fatalities)

#24. Butte County, California
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 16.9 per 100K people (35 deaths)
- 7 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 12 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: SR-99 (5 fatalities)

#23. San Joaquin County, California
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 16.9 per 100K people (136 deaths)
- 40 pedestrian deaths
- 9 bicyclist deaths
- 58 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: SR-99 (13 fatalities)

#22. Madera County, California
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 17.1 per 100K people (28 deaths)
- 10 pedestrian deaths
- 1 bicyclist death
- 15 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: SR-99 (6 fatalities)

#21. Tulare County, California
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 17.1 per 100K people (82 deaths)
- 23 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 36 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: SR-99 (8 fatalities)

#20. San Bernardino County, California
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 17.2 per 100K people (378 deaths)
- 145 pedestrian deaths
- 18 bicyclist deaths
- 113 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: I-15 (39 fatalities)

#19. Del Norte County, California
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 18.8 per 100K people (5 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 3 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities

#18. Kern County, California
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 19.2 per 100K people (176 deaths)
- 58 pedestrian deaths
- 7 bicyclist deaths
- 49 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: SR-99 (12 fatalities)

#17. Humboldt County, California
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 19.4 per 100K people (26 deaths)
- 10 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 6 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: US-101 (9 fatalities)

#16. Merced County, California
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 20.0 per 100K people (59 deaths)
- 14 pedestrian deaths
- 2 bicyclist deaths
- 19 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: SR-99 (9 fatalities)

#15. Tehama County, California
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 21.6 per 100K people (14 deaths)
- 1 pedestrian death
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 4 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: I-5 (6 fatalities)

#14. Colusa County, California
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 22.6 per 100K people (5 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 1 death involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities

#13. Yuba County, California
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 23.3 per 100K people (20 deaths)
- 7 pedestrian deaths
- 2 bicyclist deaths
- 5 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities

#12. Sutter County, California
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 23.4 per 100K people (23 deaths)
- 3 pedestrian deaths
- 1 bicyclist death
- 9 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: SR-99 (9 fatalities)

#11. Lassen County, California
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 24.3 per 100K people (7 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 2 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities

#10. Mendocino County, California
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 24.6 per 100K people (22 deaths)
- 1 pedestrian death
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 3 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: US-101 (9 fatalities)

#9. Kings County, California
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 24.8 per 100K people (38 deaths)
- 10 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 11 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: SR-43 (5 fatalities)

#8. Amador County, California
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 26.3 per 100K people (11 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 6 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: SR-88 (5 fatalities)

#7. Lake County, California
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 28.0 per 100K people (19 deaths)
- 6 pedestrian deaths
- 1 bicyclist death
- 7 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities

#6. Calaveras County, California
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 30.1 per 100K people (14 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 5 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities

#5. Tuolumne County, California
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 35.1 per 100K people (19 deaths)
- 1 pedestrian death
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 8 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: SR-120 (7 fatalities)

#4. Inyo County, California
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 37.7 per 100K people (7 deaths)
- 2 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 1 death involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities

#3. Siskiyou County, California
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 41.9 per 100K people (18 deaths)
- 1 pedestrian death
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 8 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities

#2. Glenn County, California
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 46.1 per 100K people (13 deaths)
- 2 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 3 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: I-5 (7 fatalities)

#1. Trinity County, California
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 51.0 per 100K people (8 deaths)
- 1 pedestrian death
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 5 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities

This story features data reporting and writing by Wade Zhou and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 50 states.