Top 10: A look at the types of car crashes in Washtenaw County
Single-vehicle crashes are the top crash category in Washtenaw County, making up about 34% of all crashes, according to Washtenaw Area Transportation Study data.
That's followed by rear end crashes (28.2%) and angle crashes (16.9%), WATS data shows.
Here's a breakdown of the Top 10 types of crashes in the county in 2007; total of 10,695 crashes occurred that year.
- Single motor vehicle: 34%
- Rear end: 28.2%
- Angle: 16.9%
- Sideswipe (same side): 10%
- Other/Unknown: 3.4%
- Head-On Left Turn: 2.1%
- Sideswipe (opposite side): 2%
- Head-On: 1.2%
- Rear-End Left Turn: 1%
- Rear-End Right Turn: 1%
According to WATS, single-car crashes occur most frequently in the county's rural areas. The Michigan State Police, whose troopers patrol the highways and many of the rural roads in the county, responded to the highest volume of single-car crashes at 59%, WATS said.
In Northfield Township, which also covers several rural roadways, 54.5% of crashes were single car.
Rear-end crashes were highest in Saline, where 40% of the crashes involved one vehicle hitting the back of a stopped vehicle, WATS figures show. Rear-end collisions also were high in Pittsfield Township (39.1%) and Ann Arbor (38.8%).
Finally, angle crashes are those that involve a side impact between two cars at an about 90-degree angle. Those varied from a high of 26.2% in Ypsilanti to a low of 6% by the Michigan State Police, WATS said.
If you're interested in more crash and traffic-related data, check out the Top 20 crash-prone intersections in Washtenaw County and Top 20 busiest roads in Washtenaw County.
Comments
DebbieDora2
Fri, Sep 4, 2009 : 8:06 a.m.
Thank you for printing this. When I get into my car my cell phone becomes my car tool. I watch people at lights texting, talking and eating all at once.I have avioded approximately 22 accidents related to misconduct on the road. I do not consume alchohol but it doesn't take an idiot to see them on the road I wish you would comply data Car crashes related to cell phones drunk fdrivers texting age groups drug related etc. Even prescription mediication abused or used improperly Instead Of AAPD staying parked in their usual traps Broadway Gandy Dancer Vets a never ending lists they should be on the road looking for this erractic behavior. I have cheated death as of yesterday 22 times inthe last two years Your cell phone is a car tool If you ahve to use it nount it, their are devices on star etc. IF YOU CAN EAT,, DRINK, TEXT, DRIVE AND TALK WOW THATS DEFINATELY MULTI TASKING AND IF YOU HAVE A 5 SPEED WHOO YOU DESRVE A BURGER KING CROWN. GET IT TOGEETHER PEOPLE PHONES ARE TOOLS NOT WEAPONS!
jcj
Wed, Sep 2, 2009 : 9:02 p.m.
What does it take to be on the staff at Ann Arbor.com? Certainly not a degree in Math. This article is very misleading. Someone was killed in the crash near Baker rd this morning and not a word so far on Ann Arbor.com! The idiots that do not drive 60 in the construction zone (and that is when there are no workers) are going to keep killing people! The speed limit was 45 when this accident happened!
Bob Dively
Wed, Sep 2, 2009 : 6:04 p.m.
"It may seem surprising, but single-car crashes make up the majority of all types of crashes in the county" That is the exact opposite of what the quoted data say. If 34% of crashes are single car accidents (type #1) and the other 9 types are multi-car accidents equaling 65.8%, the the majority of accidents are multi-car accidents. Also, "inanimate" is a poorly chosen word. Collisions involving 2 or more cars are still collisions between inanimate objects.
Sofia Toti
Wed, Sep 2, 2009 : 4:12 p.m.
I got rear-ended in Colorado this past spring & the event reminded me that there the state has determined that a rear-ender is prima facie evidence of fault on the part of the following driver. I don't know whether this has reduced the percentage of rear-end collisions.
Jon Saalberg
Wed, Sep 2, 2009 : 10:39 a.m.
"# Rear end: 28.2%" Given all the cell phone yakking, eating, reading, texting, and other activities that go on that have nothing to do with driving, I'm surprised this statistic isn't higher.
NorthMaple
Wed, Sep 2, 2009 : 10:15 a.m.
Isn't the first sentence of this article a bit misleading? According to the crash data you present, Washtenaw County drivers had 34% of their crashes by themselves, but had 65.8% of their crashes (the sum of #2 through #10) involve another vehicle. That makes them two times as likely to crash into someone else's car than crash into a tree, sign, or other inanimate object.
KJMClark
Wed, Sep 2, 2009 : 8:06 a.m.
"Rear-end crashes were highest in Saline, where 40% of the crashes involved one vehicle hitting the back of a stopped vehicle, WATS figures show. Rear-end collisions also were high in Pittsfield Township (39.1%) and Ann Arbor (38.8%)." And I would bet that 90% of these rear-end collisions were the result of tailgating. Having driven all over the country, we really seem to have a high percentage of bullies behind the wheel. The article says "hitting the back of a stopped vehicle", but there's really no way to know if the vehicle was stopped or stopping. Just about any crash involving the front of one vehicle and the back of another gets coded as a rear-end crash. The single-vehicle crashes include deer crashes, inattentive drivers hitting trees, drunk drivers, people falling asleep at the wheel, people driving too fast for conditions and losing control, etc. I think we would hope that someone driving badly - and yes, most of those are poor driving - would crash into a tree or guardrail instead of another vehicle, bicyclist, or pedestrian. It's unfortunate that there are so many of these crashes, but it's a good thing to have a high percentage of crashes in this category.
josemartin
Wed, Sep 2, 2009 : 7:50 a.m.
It's ridiculous how much time is spent sitting at Washtenaw County red lights waiting for NOBODY. There are lots of ways to reduce this without compromising safety.
dconkey
Wed, Sep 2, 2009 : 7:23 a.m.
I would be intersted in how many of the single car crashes were by drivers under the age of 25.