Philadelphia Ranked High on List of Worst Drivers

[av_textblock size=” font_color=” color=” id=” custom_class=” av-medium-font-size=” av-small-font-size=” av-mini-font-size=” av_uid=’av-k3qagri2′ admin_preview_bg=”] Allstate Insurance recently issued its eighth annual Best Drivers Report™, which ranks the 200 largest cities in America by which has the ‘safest drivers’ compared to a national average of 50,000 cities.  The main determining factor for the ranking is the statistical frequency with which car collisions occur.  This year, Sioux Falls, SD was crowned the safest city for drivers.  The other side of the list, however, are what would be considered the most unsafe cities for drivers.

Philadelphia

Philadelphia ranked 190^th on the list of 200 and dead last in cities with more than 1 million people.  According to the data, a driver in Philadelphia has roughly a 64% higher chance of being in a collision compared to the national average and had an average of 6.2 years between collisions per driver.  For a comparison, the safest city with a population of over 1 million people was Phoenix, where a driver is actually 1.6% less likely to get into a car accident than the national average and has an average of 10.2 years between collisions. *

Boost Philadelphia’s ranking

The study points out that drivers in urban areas with more than one million residents, such as Philadelphia, are much more likely than the national average to be involved in a collision.  However, cities such as Phoenix, which ranked 55^th on last year’s list and 53^rd this year, actually decreased its collision average by more than two statistical points while enjoying an increase in population size.

How are accidents prevented?

Since the biggest cause of accidents is human behavior, drivers can have a significant impact on safety just by improving their behavior. Some of this behavior can be improved through education, but a lot of it is just common sense. Allstate offers these tips to help drivers improve:

• • Avoid distractions. Cell phone use, texting while driving, and changing the radio can cause accidents. Even if you’re great at multitasking, all it takes is a couple of seconds with your eyes off the road to cause a crash. Minimize distractions by turning your cell phone off, sticking with the same radio station, and checking your appearance before turning the key in the ignition.
  • Maintain the upkeep on your vehicle. Ensure that your tires, brakes, lights, and battery are in good working order.
  • Be aware of road conditions. Drive appropriately and slow down on days with less than ideal weather, such as in snow, ice, fog, rain, and wind.
  • Maintain a safe distance between you and other cars. Follow the old driver’s ed. rule of thumb of maintaining a distance of one car length between your car and the car in front of you for every 10 mph you are traveling.
  • Don’t be a road rager. Anger caused by traffic, running late, or other poor driving can quickly escalate. Stay calm, and avoid other aggressive or angry drivers.

The residents of Philadelphia can take notice by the example set by the City of Phoenix, AZ – in which collision and injury statistics were reduced despite a city’s growth.  Individual level of attention and an emphasis on safety plays a big role. Transportation and planning departments can also implement technology and infrastructure to promote safe driving.

*Statistical data regarding crashes based on population size adapted from the AllState Best Driver’s Report™.  For more information or to read the report in its entirety, visit the AllState website.

About the Author: Joseph Lombardo is a Hammonton, NJ attorney who founded the Law Offices of Joseph Lombardo.  His practice includes representation for issues related to personal injury and criminal traffic matters.[/av_textblock]