2005 Virginia Traffic Crash Facts

NHTSA · 2006 · ROSA P / Virginia. Dept. of Motor Vehicles

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Summary

The 2005 Virginia Traffic Crash Facts report, published by the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles in cooperation with the Department of State Police and the Department of Transportation, provides a comprehensive statistical analysis of traffic safety in Virginia for the year 2005. The document serves as a resource for problem identification, education, and community activities by detailing crash frequencies, fatalities, injuries, and contributing factors across various demographics, vehicle types, and geographic jurisdictions. The data is derived from police reports and medical examiner records, covering 153,849 reportable traffic crashes. The report categorizes incidents into fatal, personal injury, and property damage crashes, with definitions provided for terms such as "alcohol-related" and "reportable traffic crash." Analysis includes statewide totals, monthly trends, hourly and daily distributions, and breakdowns by driver age, gender, and vehicle type. Geographic data is segmented by DMV districts, counties, cities, and towns, allowing for localized safety assessments. The report also contextualizes 2005 data against historical trends from 1996 to 2005 and compares Virginia’s leading causes of death to national statistics. In 2005, Virginia recorded 946 fatalities, a 2.60 percent increase from 2004, and 76,023 injuries, a 3.14 percent decrease. While total crashes decreased slightly by 0.04 percent, the death rate per 100 million vehicle miles increased by 0.85 percent to 1.18. Alcohol was a significant factor, involved in 11,495 crashes and resulting in 322 fatalities, though alcohol-related fatalities decreased by 6.12 percent compared to the previous year. Speeding was identified in 16,905 crashes, with 6.5 percent of all drivers violating speed laws. Two-vehicle crashes accounted for 60.5 percent of all incidents. Fatal crashes were most frequent between 5:00 P.M. and 7:59 P.M., while personal injury crashes peaked during evening commute hours. Motorcyclists and pedestrians represented vulnerable groups, with specific data highlighting higher risk profiles for certain age and gender demographics. The report concludes that while injury and crash totals declined, the rise in fatalities and death rates indicates persistent safety challenges. The detailed geographic and demographic breakdowns highlight disparities in safety outcomes across Virginia’s regions, with some counties and cities exhibiting significantly higher death rates per licensed driver. The data underscores the continued impact of alcohol impairment and speeding on crash severity. By providing granular data on crash circumstances and trends, the report aims to inform targeted highway safety initiatives and public education efforts to reduce traffic-related deaths and injuries in the state.

Key finding

Virginia recorded 946 traffic fatalities and 76,023 injuries in 2005, with alcohol-related crashes causing 322 deaths and 7,512 injuries.

Methodology

dataset

Provenance

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Topics

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• incidence prevalence
• sex gender
• demographic disparities
• fatality injury trends

Information type

What kind of knowledge this paper contributes, grouped by family — independent of topic (what it is about) and method (how it was studied).

• Empirical Findings: crash risk outcomes