During the December holidays, vehicle crash fatalities are higher than expected and there are more crashes along rural roads than the rest of the year, according to a study from the University of Alabama.

The study, which examined crash data from the last half of the past five Decembers, also showed several rural counties led the state for having more crashes than during other times of the year.

During the focus period, several factors — including impaired driving; swerving to avoid an animal, an unseen object or person; and driving too fast for conditions — are overrepresented as the cause for crashes compared to the rest of the year.

“Increased traffic, longer nights and holiday gatherings mean there are more chances for severe and fatal crashes during the holidays,” said David Brown, who led the study for the UA Center for Advanced Public Safety in partnership with the Alabama Transportation Institute. “Drivers should take precautions to limit risk by buckling up, driving the speed limit, avoiding unnecessary nighttime driving and never getting behind the wheel under the influence of any level of drugs and/or alcohol.”

AAA estimates that holiday traffic this year will increase about 28% from last year, returning to near-record levels. (contributed)

From Dec. 15 through the 31st in the years 2016 to 2020, there were 6.8% more fatal crashes than would be expected during other times over the five years of the study.

Also, there were 365 more crashes in rural areas of the state than other times of the year, or 4.7% more. Federal highways and municipal roads also experienced more crashes than normal during the December holidays.

The counties with the most overrepresented crashes were Henry, Jackson and Covington with 23%, 21% and 20% more.

Cities with the most overrepresented crashes during the period were topped by Oxford, with 48.9% more; Millbrook, with 33.8% overrepresentation; and Athens, with 26.5% overrepresentation.

“The cities that top the list with more crashes during the holidays than the rest of the year are all along major federal interstates or highways, which suggests increased holiday traffic combined with other raised risk factors led to increased vehicle crashes,” Brown said. “Drivers on these roads during the holiday season should be aware of this and drive with special caution.”

The study employed the Critical Analysis Reporting Environment (CARE), a software analysis system developed by CAPS research and development personnel to automatically mine information from existing databases. The software allows comparisons among crash subsets to mine the data for over-representations, which are items significantly higher than what would be expected compared to the general population of crashes. The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency provided the crash records for the study.

Driving safety tips

AAA expects this year’s holiday traffic to return to near-record volume following last year’s pandemic-related decline, according to a recent statement from the Alabama Department of Transportation (ALDOT). Traffic this year is projected to increase about 28% from last year.

To help with traffic flow and safety, ALDOT announced it will have no temporary lane closures on Alabama interstates from Friday, Dec. 24, at 6 a.m. until Sunday, Dec. 26, at 11:59 p.m., as well as during the same time period the following weekend.

ALDOT offers these tips for safe driving this holiday season:

• Buckle up. Using a safety belt is the easiest and most effective way to reduce injuries and save lives during a crash. Almost 60% of those who died from vehicle crashes in Alabama in 2020 were not wearing seat belts, said Allison Green, Drive Safe Alabama coordinator with ALDOT.
• Drive sober, alert and without distractions. Just one drink before driving can put you and others in danger, because alcohol impairs thinking, reasoning and muscle coordination.
• Plan ahead and allow extra time to reach your destination. Motorists planning their holiday travel route can find Alabama traffic and road condition information at www.ALGOtraffic.com or by downloading the ALGO Traffic app.

A version of this story originally appeared on the University of Alabama’s website. Information from the Alabama Department of Transportation has been added to this story.