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New Study: The Most Dangerous Intersections in Sacramento

From 2013-2017, there were over 26,000 motor vehicle crashes in the city of Sacramento. Of these crashes, 5,517 occurred at intersections. 

Considering motor vehicle accidents in Sacramento are the majority of the cases our law firm handles, we wanted to conduct an analysis to which of the city’s intersections pose the highest risk to drivers.

Where do collisions occur more frequently?  What intersections are the most dangerous in Sacramento? 

We worked with data visualization company 1point21 Interactive and analyzed five years of traffic collision data from the California Highway Patrol to find out.  Below are the results of our study.

Interactive Map of Crashes at Intersections

Through our analysis, we found that while intersection-related accidents make up just over 20 percent of total crashes in Sacramento, they cause more than 33 percent of total injuries and 30 percent of all severe injuries.

From 2013-2017, there were over 5,500 crashes at Sacramento intersections, leading to 6,695 injuries (including 262 severe injuries) and 46 fatalities.

The interactive map below shows where all intersection-related crashes occurred in Sacramento during the study period.

Larger circles indicate a higher Danger Index score, which is scored based on the total number of crashes and the severity of injuries at that intersection.

*Note: You can zoom in on the map and click any red circle for additional information. Drag and drop the yellow person icon to switch to a street view of that location.

Dataset:  The Most Dangerous Intersections in Sacramento

The table below shows all intersections in the city of Sacramento with a Danger Index of 50 or more. It includes the following information:

• Crashes: Total number of crashes at this street pair
• Injured: Total number of reported injuries
• MI: Minor Injuries
• VI: Visible Injuries
• SI: Serious Injuries
• Fatals: Number of total fatalities
• Danger Index: Total rating based on the number of crashes, the severity of injuries and number fatalities at that intersection. Rank is determined by the danger index.

Nearly 17 percent of all intersection crashes (884 of 5,517 crashes) occurred at one of these 79 crossings.  They combined for 1,333 total injuries (including 60 severe injuries) and 14 fatalities.

The Top 25: By Danger Index Score

While our full study identified 79 intersections with a Danger Index score of 50 or higher, the top twenty-five on our list scored as significantly more dangerous.  These crossings had an average score of 90.5, more than 30 points higher than the fifty-four that they precede.

The Most Dangerous Intersection in Sacramento: Arena Blvd & Truxel Rd

We identified Arena Blvd and Truxel Road as the most dangerous intersection in Sacramento.  Located in the Natomas area of Sacramento, Arena Blvd and Truxel Road led the way in total crashes (26), total injuries (50), and Danger Index (166).

Whether its due to the proximity to Sleep Train Arena, the Airport, or simply the amount of traffic going through one of the intersection’s 41 lanes of traffic(!), more collisions and injuries occur at Arena and Truxel than at any other intersection in Sacramento.

Methodology and Data:

This study identifies dangerous intersections in Sacramento based on crash volume and injury severity.

Our data comes from the Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System maintained by the California Highway Patrol for the years 2013 – 2017.   We included only crashes that occurred at intersections and removed any that occurred major highway crossings or highway on or off ramps.