Counties with the most motor vehicle accident fatalities in Virginia
Counties with the most motor vehicle accident fatalities in Virginia
Media outlets were quick during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and the consequent lockdowns that defined the summer and fall of 2020 to note just how little traffic there was as a result. Simple logic would suggest that less traffic equals a lower likelihood of accidents and thus fewer injuries and fatalities. Sadly, this was not the case.
Nationwide, traffic fatalities rose 7.2% in 2020 to nearly 39,000. That number was the highest recorded since 2007. Qualifying this disturbing fact is a sticky wicket—common denominators behind traffic deaths such as impaired driving, failure to use a seat belt, and excessive speed were certainly contributing factors, but they alone do not account for a rise in deaths commensurate with a 430-million-mile drop in the number of miles people traveled across the course of the year. What can be qualified, however, is where fatal crashes took place.
Citing data from the Fatality Analysis Reporting System, compiled by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Stacker identified the counties in Virginia that had the most fatalities from motor vehicle crashes in 2020. The number of accident fatalities are 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 2020. 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.
#50. Roanoke County, Virginia
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 2 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: I-81 (5 fatalities)
#49. Newport News city, Virginia
- 3 pedestrian deaths
- 1 bicyclist death
- 9 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: I-64 (5 fatalities)
#48. Richmond city, Virginia
- 10 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 7 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#47. Bedford County, Virginia
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 3 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#46. Charlottesville city, Virginia
- 1 pedestrian death
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 1 death involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#45. Roanoke city, Virginia
- 8 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 2 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#44. Wise County, Virginia
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 1 death involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#43. Campbell County, Virginia
- 3 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 1 death involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#42. Franklin County, Virginia
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 1 death involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#41. Hampton city, Virginia
- 1 pedestrian death
- 1 bicyclist death
- 9 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: I-64 (5 fatalities)
#40. Washington County, Virginia
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 6 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#39. Accomack County, Virginia
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 3 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#38. Fauquier County, Virginia
- 1 pedestrian death
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 1 death involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#37. Albemarle County, Virginia
- 3 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 1 death involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#36. Gloucester County, Virginia
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 2 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#35. Frederick County, Virginia
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 1 bicyclist death
- 6 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: US-50 (6 fatalities)
#34. Isle of Wight County, Virginia
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 1 death involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#33. Louisa County, Virginia
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 3 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#32. Hanover County, Virginia
- 2 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 6 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#31. Powhatan County, Virginia
- 1 pedestrian death
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 1 death involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#30. Smyth County, Virginia
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 1 death involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#29. Culpeper County, Virginia
- 1 pedestrian death
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 4 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#28. Augusta County, Virginia
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 4 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#27. Danville city, Virginia
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 2 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#26. Rockingham County, Virginia
- 1 pedestrian death
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 9 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#25. Tazewell County, Virginia
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 4 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#24. Carroll County, Virginia
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 1 death involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#23. Pulaski County, Virginia
- 1 pedestrian death
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 3 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#22. Petersburg city, Virginia
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 3 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#21. Dinwiddie County, Virginia
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 0 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#20. Orange County, Virginia
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 4 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#19. Scott County, Virginia
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 3 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#18. Shenandoah County, Virginia
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 4 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#17. Caroline County, Virginia
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 3 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#16. New Kent County, Virginia
- 1 pedestrian death
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 1 death involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#15. Henry County, Virginia
- 1 pedestrian death
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 7 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#14. King William County, Virginia
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 2 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#13. Pittsylvania County, Virginia
- 2 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 8 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#12. Giles County, Virginia
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 0 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#11. Wythe County, Virginia
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 3 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#10. Nottoway County, Virginia
- 1 pedestrian death
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 3 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#9. Nelson County, Virginia
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 2 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#8. Buckingham County, Virginia
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 3 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#7. Westmoreland County, Virginia
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 4 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#6. Northampton County, Virginia
- 1 pedestrian death
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 1 death involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#5. Amelia County, Virginia
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 4 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#4. Russell County, Virginia
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 0 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: US-19 (5 fatalities)
#3. Middlesex County, Virginia
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 2 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#2. Charles City County, Virginia
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 1 death involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
#1. Sussex County, Virginia
- 1 pedestrian death
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 0 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: I-95 (6 fatalities)