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D.C. drivers most accident-prone in nation, insurance study finds
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D.C. drivers average one accident every 5.4 years, making them almost three times more collision-prone that drivers in Sioux Falls, S.D., which ranked as the safest driving city in the 2008 Allstate America’s Best Drivers report.
The number means D.C. drivers are 84 percent more likely to be in an accident than the average driver nationally and places the city as the most dangerous for drivers among the 193 studied.
Alexandria and Arlington ranked as the 11th-and 13th-most-dangerous cities, with drivers 42 percent and 41 percent more likely to be in accidents than the average driver nationally, respectively.
Alexandria drivers average one accident every seven years, and Arlington drivers one every 7.1 years.
“All three of those areas suffer from the same affliction: gridlockitis,” AAA Mid-Atlantic spokesman John Townsend said. “And that has many side effects, including wrecks.”
The Washington area ranks as the second-most-congested in the country, tying with Atlanta and San Francisco and trailing only Los Angeles.
Washington drivers spend an average of 60 hours a year sitting in traffic, up from 16 hours in 1984, according to the 2007 Urban Mobility Report.
“Another factor is the aggressive driving we see in this area,” Townsend said. “When you’re stuck in traffic and it’s bumper to bumper, there’s no room for margin of error. I think people just take too many chances and take too many risks out of frustration.”
Area drivers can glean some good news from the Allstate numbers: Accident rates in all three of the listed jurisdictions dropped slightly from last year.
In 2007, D.C. drivers were 89 percent more likely to get into accidents than the national average. Alexandria and Arlington drivers were 52 percent and 47 percent more accident-prone than drivers throughout the country, respectively.
The insurance giant evaluated figures from the claims filed with them in 2006.
tluntz@dcexamienr.com
Comments from Examiner Readers
4:20 PM MST on Sun., Jul. 27, 2008 re: "D.C. drivers most accident-prone in nation, insurance study finds"
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9:25 AM MST on Tue., Jul. 22, 2008
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1:55 PM MST on Mon., Jul. 21, 2008
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Examiner Reader said:
the problem is over building and over crowding to many liveing in one place they can building buildings 15 stories high and move people in them but when they hit the road they will be stuck in traffic.
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Examiner Reader said:
Funny. I am a native and have not have an accident for almost 8 years. In addition, the last one was me being rear ended by a Virginia driver. I agree with the previous post. A large percentage of drivers are from somewhere else. Instead of taking the subway like most long-term tourist, they seem to want to drive all over the place. It would be interesting to see if the majority of accidents are occurring. But I honestly believe that a being in traffic with a driver for MD or VA is a form of cruel and unusual punishment.
4 agree | 1 disagree
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Examiner Reader said:
DC drivers are a subset of drivers in DC. A large percentage of drivers are from somewhere else. The city is new to them. They may, when at home drive, for example,on the left side of the road. DC is not easy, though, even for locals.
9 agree | 7 disagree
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