The Safest and Most Dangerous Roads on New Year’s

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Next to Mardi Gras, people consume the most drinks on average during the New Year’s holiday, with an average of 43.5% of the population binge drinking.¹

SafeWise wants to help you ring in the New Year with class and grace, so we’re helping you get home safe. We’re giving away $10 Lyft vouchers to the first 100 people who register for our Safe Rides Home campaign.

Even if you don’t qualify for our voucher, you can still save yourself the $6,500 or more you’d spend on a DUI by instead hailing a ride from companies like Lyft, taking public transport, or asking a friend to be the designated driver.²

Our Safe Rides Home campaign promotes alternative forms of transportation, which on nights like New Year’s Eve are more than necessary for anyone having a drink or two. It’s smarter to avoid driving drunk than risk the consequences.

Between Christmas and New Year’s in 2018, there were 285 drunk-driving-related fatalities. And a total of 10,511 people were killed in drunk driving crashes, which accounts for a third of deaths on roads every year.3 These deaths are 100% preventable. 

States with the Most Drunk Driving Deaths

2019 Rank
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

State	Impaired Driving Deaths per 100,000	2018 Rank
Montana	7.44	6
Wyoming	5.89	1
South Carolina	5.72	2
Mississippi	5.46	8
New Mexico	5.15	4
South Dakota	5.10	14
Alabama	5.03	5
Texas	5.01	7
Louisiana	4.64	10
Arkansas	4.45	9

Based on fatal crashes where the Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) level was .08+.

States with the Fewest Drunk Driving Deaths

2019 Rank
51
49
48
47
46
45
44
43
42
41

State	Impaired Driving Deaths per 100,000	2018 Rank
District of Columbia	1.28	45
New Jersey	1.40	51
New York	1.57	50
Massachusetts	1.74	47
Minnesota	1.87	49
Rhode Island	1.89	30
Utah	1.93	48
Maryland	2.02	33
Washington	2.20	44
Vermont	2.40	38

Based on fatal crashes where the Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) level was .08+.

Drunk Driving in the Most Dangerous States

Since we last reported on the most dangerous states for impaired driving, a lot’s changed. We’ll catch you up on some of the more notable differences from the 2017 to 2018 data.

On the Right Track

The most significant improvement came from Kentucky, which previously ranked #13 for most dangerous but now sits better-than-average at #30. In another great leap towards safety, Rhode Island dropped in ranking from #30 to #46. Great job to both of these states for their significant improvement. 

(Remember, a lower-numbered ranking means a lower number of driving deaths).

The following states also saw notable improvements from 2017 to 2018:

• North Dakota (#3 to #16)
• West Virginia (#17 to #28) 
• Maryland (#33 to #44)
• Maine (#19 to #29)
• Kansas (#22 to #31)

Slow Your Roll

Montana topped the list as the most dangerous state for impaired driving, going from #6 in 2017 to #1 in 2018.

But the biggest increase in dangerous driving came from New Hampshire, which increased in danger by 25 rankings. New Hampshire went from being one of the safest states for driving to worse than average. 

Alaska’s problem got worse too. The great northern state’s ranking rose from #34 in 2017 to #13 in 2018.  

The following states also saw a notable increase in drunk driving fatalities:

• Oregon (#27 to #18)
• South Dakota (#6 to #14)
• Colorado (#31 to #26)
• Iowa (#36 to #41)
• Pennsylvania (#43 to #38)

What Else Did We Learn?

• The southern states (minus Georgia and Florida) ranging from South Carolina to New Mexico feature some of the most dangerous roads for impaired drivers.
• East Coast drivers can feel assured their states are some of the safest roads in the US.

If you’re in an at-risk state, make sure to sign up for our Safe Rides Home initiative.

Complete Rankings

2019 Rank
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51

2018 Rank	Difference*	State	Impaired Driving Deaths per 100,000
6	5	Montana	7.44
1	-1	Wyoming	5.89
2	-1	South Carolina	5.72
8	4	Mississippi	5.46
4	-1	New Mexico	5.15
14	8	South Dakota	5.1
5	-2	Alabama	5.03
7	-1	Texas	5.01
10	1	Louisiana	4.64
9	-1	Arkansas	4.45
15	4	North Carolina	4.05
18	6	Arizona	3.97
34	21	Alaska	3.93
12	-2	Missouri	3.92
16	1	Florida	3.82
3	-13	North Dakota	3.82
11	-6	Oklahoma	3.68
27	9	Oregon	3.65
20	1	Tennessee	3.59
21	1	Georgia	3.56
46	25	New Hampshire	3.54
29	7	Wisconsin	3.42
24	1	Nebraska	3.42
28	4	Indiana	3.39
23	-2	Idaho	3.31
31	5	Colorado	3.3
25	-2	Connecticut	3.22
17	-11	West Virginia	3.16
19	-10	Maine	3.14
13	-17	Kentucky	3.07
22	-9	Kansas	3.02
26	-6	Delaware	2.9
35	2	Nevada	2.87
37	3	Virginia	2.82
40	5	California	2.7
41	5	Iowa	2.69
32	-5	Michigan	2.67
43	5	Pennsylvania	2.61
39	0	Ohio	2.52
36	-4	Hawaii	2.46
42	1	Illinois	2.43
38	-4	Vermont	2.4
44	1	Washington	2.2
33	-11	Maryland	2.02
48	3	Utah	1.93
30	-16	Rhode Island	1.89
49	2	Minnesota	1.87
47	-1	Massachusetts	1.74
50	1	New York	1.57
51	1	New Jersey	1.4
45	-6	District of Columbia	1.28

*A negative number indicates that the state’s ranking decreased year over year, which means they are safer compared to last year. A positive number indicates that the state’s ranking increased year over year, which means they are more dangerous compared to last year.

Get a Safe Ride Home on New Year’s Eve

Let’s start off the New Year rolling in style. Whether you’re driving around for the holidays or your daily commute, we can all make an effort to be safer. 

Our Safe Rides Home campaign promotes alternative forms of transportation for impaired individuals, so help us spread the word. And see if you qualify for one of our $10 Lyft vouchers too. 

We wish you a happy 2020—cheers!

Methodology

We sourced data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Association to determine which states had the most impaired driving deaths. We counted all crashes in 2018 (the most recent data) involving drivers with a BAC level of .08 or above. We then compared these with the state’s population in 2018 to find how many deaths per 100,000 residents there were.

 

Sources

1. Alcohol.org, “Booziest Holidays”
2. DrivingLaws.org, “How Much Does a First Offense DUI Cost?
3. National Highway Traffic Safety Association, “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over”
4. National Highway Traffic Safety Association, “Fatality Analysis Reporting System”
5. United States Census Bureau, “2018 National and State Population Estimates”

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