Report: RR has fewest traffic fatalities in NM
But I-25, I-40 among most dangerous highways in U.S.
Rio Rancho ranks at the top in New Mexico for fewest traffic fatalities, but the state is still home to some of the most dangerous roadways for DWI-related deaths nationwide and young drivers in rural areas spell trouble in terms of traffic tragedies, according to recent reports.
ConsumerAffairs.com ranks the City of Vision No. 1 one for fewest traffic fatalities in the Land of Enchantment. Based on data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, ConsumerAffairs calculated the average rate of traffic deaths per 100,000 population to arrive at the rankings.
Last month, Consumer Affairs posted an interactive map on its website indicating Rio Rancho had three fatalities in 2014 (the most recent NHTSA data available), one of which was related to speeding — or a rate of 3.23 total deaths per 100,000 population.
Corrales had two distraction fatalities, two DWI-related deaths and two speeding fatalities. ConsumerAffairs calculated that to be 23.59 total deaths per 100,000 population, giving it a ranking of eighth in New Mexico.
Albuquerque, ranked fourth in the state, had 97 fatal accidents in 2014, with 26 stemming from distracted driving, 14 related to driving under the influence and 20 caused by speeding. Its traffic death rate per 100,000
was calculated to be 17.36.
The Rio Rancho Police Department has recently expanded its efforts to help keep Rio Rancho’s numbers low.
In 2015, the department instituted a new Primary Selective Traffic Enforcement Program. It’s a partnership between motorcycle officers and patrol officers to monitor high traffic volume and crash frequency.
“As a result of this program, the city has seen a 10 percent drop in overall crashes across the city and a 25 percent drop in crashes involving injuries over the previous year,” said Capt. Jason Bowie of the RRPD Traffic Division.
Nationally and statewide, the picture isn’t so bright. A recent study by Avvo, an online legal service agency, found there have been 94,550 accidents involving a DWIrelated death in the U.S. since 2004. Most of those accidents happened in predominantly rural states — like New Mexico.
Avvo compiled its report with data from NHTSA and Mothers Against Drunk Driving.
“Rural drivers are both more likely to keep driving under the influence despite prior (DWI) convictions and be under the compounding effects of drugs and alcohol,” according to Avvo’s study. “The most dangerous stretches of highways run through the western U.S., from Montana down through New Mexico.”
Specifically I-25 and I-40, which ranked fourth and fifth, respectively, in Avvo’s list of the 25 most dangerous interstate highways in America.
While rural, Western drivers appear more likely to drive under the influence, so do younger drivers.
“The statistics show that the average age of the driver in a majority of these accidents is between 34 and 36 years old. At the highest level of intoxication, the average age rises to just under 41 years,” Avvo researchers said.
Experts concluded drivers at the highest risk of an alcohol-related fatal accident are 20 to 24 years old, in rural areas, and are without access to reliable and affordable public transportation.