Independence Day is about fireworks, parades and picnics, that’s for sure, but there’s another reality — and it’s a sad counterpart to what should be a celebration of freedom. The Fourth of July is the deadliest summer holiday on the road.
Part of this is because the holiday is tied to a specific date. While it can fall on a weekend or be an adjacent weekend, in some years it falls during the week, such as on a Thursday in 2024. You don’t always have a long weekend like Labor Day or Memorial Day, so car trips can be more concentrated, sometimes even all on one day. A lot of binge drinking and other bad decisions can also be concentrated on that day. And more than those other holidays, Fourth of July events bring huge crowds from coast to coast.
The people at the Jerry insurance app took a good look at it NHTSA crash data along with information from the Census Bureau and came up with some numbers and graphs that you might find sobering (literally) this fourth, when a record 60.6 million Americans are expected to travel:
- There has been an average of 429 fatal accidents nationally on the 4th of July between 2016 and 2022. That is 17% more than the average in 2008-2015.
- During a fourth holiday weekend in 2022, there were nearly 500 deaths involving impaired drivers.
- In almost half of the accidents, 47%, there was a combination of driving too fast, drink and drugs. A third, 31%, had been speeding; a third, 32%, involved at least one driver under the influence of alcohol; and another 12% involved drugs.
- Three-quarters (73%) of fatal car crashes on Fourth Street involve men. The majority had been drinking.
- More than half (52%) of those killed in accidents are under the age of 40. Two-thirds (66%) of deaths in that age category were in drinking-related accidents.
- There is a huge increase in fatal accidents at a certain time of day, which occurs between 9pm and midnight, as people drive home from parties and fireworks displays. There is a further increase after 1am when you add in the closing of bars.
- In some cities and states the carnage is worse than in others. Los Angeles, Chicago and Detroit have the most fatal crashes, as do California, Texas and Florida, which is not surprising given their size. (California alone recorded three times as many fatal crashes as New York).
- But on a per capita basis, Detroit, Memphis and Kansas City are the worst. Montana and the Dakotas may also be driven due to greater distances.
- And the problem isn’t just the car – Mothers against drunk driving points out that ship fatalities involving alcohol are also a major problem during the Fourth. The US Coast Guard agrees that the effects of alcohol on judgment and reaction speed are greatly enhanced in water.
To address the problem of young people drinking on Fourth Street, MADD recommends using strategies from the Handbook on the Power of ParentsAccording to a five-year study, the book concludes that teens are more likely to decline a ride from a drunk driver and less likely to drive themselves when under the influence.
The Jerry App report contains a dozen revealing charts. We’ve included two here, but for a deeper dive, you should view the full report.
On the fourth, fireworks are not the only risk. Ensure a safe and healthy one.
