Counties with the most motor vehicle accident fatalities in New Mexico

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 New Mexico 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 New Mexico.

#25. Sandoval County, New Mexico
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 8.3 per 100K people (13 deaths)
- 5 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 4 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities

#24. Santa Fe County, New Mexico
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 9.6 per 100K people (15 deaths)
- 5 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 5 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities

#23. Chaves County, New Mexico
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 12.6 per 100K people (8 deaths)
- 3 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 2 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities

#22. Doña Ana County, New Mexico
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 14.1 per 100K people (32 deaths)
- 10 pedestrian deaths
- 3 bicyclist deaths
- 9 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities

#21. Curry County, New Mexico
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 14.8 per 100K people (7 deaths)
- 3 pedestrian deaths
- 1 bicyclist death
- 3 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities

#20. San Juan County, New Mexico
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 16.5 per 100K people (20 deaths)
- 6 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 5 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: US-64 (7 fatalities)

#19. Bernalillo County, New Mexico
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 17.1 per 100K people (115 deaths)
- 58 pedestrian deaths
- 3 bicyclist deaths
- 28 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: I-40 (17 fatalities)

#18. Valencia County, New Mexico
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 17.7 per 100K people (14 deaths)
- 2 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 5 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities

#17. Otero County, New Mexico
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 18.7 per 100K people (13 deaths)
- 2 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 3 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: US-54 (5 fatalities)

#16. Lea County, New Mexico
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 24.5 per 100K people (18 deaths)
- 5 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 4 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: SR-18 (5 fatalities)

#15. Grant County, New Mexico
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 25.4 per 100K people (7 deaths)
- 1 pedestrian death
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 3 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities

#14. Eddy County, New Mexico
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 29.7 per 100K people (18 deaths)
- 2 pedestrian deaths
- 1 bicyclist death
- 6 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: US-62/180 (5 fatalities)

#13. San Miguel County, New Mexico
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 33.8 per 100K people (9 deaths)
- 2 pedestrian deaths
- 1 bicyclist death
- 4 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities

#12. Rio Arriba County, New Mexico
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 37.6 per 100K people (15 deaths)
- 4 pedestrian deaths
- 1 bicyclist death
- 6 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: US-84 (6 fatalities)

#11. Luna County, New Mexico
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 39.1 per 100K people (10 deaths)
- 1 pedestrian death
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 3 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities

#10. Colfax County, New Mexico
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 40.6 per 100K people (5 deaths)
- 1 pedestrian death
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 0 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities

#9. McKinley County, New Mexico
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 42.0 per 100K people (29 deaths)
- 8 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 10 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: I-40 (11 fatalities)

#8. Sierra County, New Mexico
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 43.3 per 100K people (5 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 1 death involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities

#7. Lincoln County, New Mexico
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 49.9 per 100K people (10 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 1 death involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities

#6. Cibola County, New Mexico
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 56.1 per 100K people (15 deaths)
- 2 pedestrian deaths
- 1 bicyclist death
- 2 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: I-40 (13 fatalities)

#5. Quay County, New Mexico
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 58.5 per 100K people (5 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 1 death involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities

#4. Socorro County, New Mexico
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 74.9 per 100K people (12 deaths)
- 2 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 5 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: I-25 (5 fatalities)

#3. Torrance County, New Mexico
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 101.9 per 100K people (16 deaths)
- 3 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 2 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: I-40 (11 fatalities)

#2. Mora County, New Mexico
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 145.5 per 100K people (6 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 0 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: I-25 (5 fatalities)

#1. Guadalupe County, New Mexico
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 161.5 per 100K people (7 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 1 death 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.