Just in time for the most dangerous days of the year to drive July 3 and 4 the national Center for Excellence in Rural Safety (CERS) at the University of Minnesota released a list of the states where Americans are more likely to die in a traffic crash on a rural road.
For most people, riding in a motor vehicle is one of the most dangerous things they ever do, and this is particularly true when traveling on rural roads. While U.S. Census figures show that about two out of ten (21 percent) Americans live in rural areas, the U.S. Department of Transportation has found that about six out of ten (57 percent) highway deaths happen on roads that it considers rural.Millions of Americans will be driving this holiday weekend, and they would be wise to carefully consider these findings before they do, said CERS Director Lee Munnich, Jr., of the University of Minnesota's Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs.America's rural byways seem so tranquil and safe, but the reality is that they can be as lethal as they are lovely.
The states with the highest proportion of their total traffic fatalities occurring on rural roads are:
1) Maine (92%) 13) New Hampshire (75%)
2) North Dakota (90%) 13) Idaho (75%)
3) South Dakota (89%) 13) Kentucky (75%)
4) Iowa (88%) 14) Oklahoma (73%)
4) Vermont (88%) 15) Minnesota (72%)
5) Montana (86%) 15) Missouri (72%)
6) Wyoming (84%) 16) Oregon (72%)
7) South Carolina (83%) 17) Alaska (71%)
8) Mississippi (82%) 18) Wisconsin (68%)
9) Arkansas (81%) 18) North Carolina (68%)
10) West Virginia (80%) 19) Utah (66%)
11) Kansas (78%) 19) Louisiana (66%)
12) Nebraska (77%) 20) Alabama (65%)
The state-by-state rural fatalities data reflects deaths on rural roads in 2005 and was compiled by CERS researchers using information from the U.S. Department of Transportation. Rural roads are identified as those located outside of areas with a population of 5,000 or more. The entire list is available at www.ruralsafety.umn.edu .
Traveling America's roads is particularly dangerous this time of year. According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, the top two days of the year for motor vehicle fatalities over the years 1986-2002 have been July 3 and July 4.