2007 Washington State Collision Data Summary

NHTSA · 2008 · ROSA P / Washington (State). Department of Transportation

archive: archived pipeline: cataloged verified

Get this paper ↗ (full text — opens at the source; we link to it, we don't host it)

Summary

This document, published by the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) in 2008, provides a comprehensive statistical summary of traffic collisions on all public roadways in Washington State for the year 2007. The report aims to disseminate collision data to government agencies, researchers, and the public to support safety analysis and program targeting. The data is derived from standard Traffic Accident Reports submitted by law enforcement officers and citizens, as required by state law for incidents involving injury, death, or property damage exceeding $700. The methodology involves the collection and processing of these reports by WSDOT’s Transportation Data Office. To ensure accurate comparative analysis, the report utilizes vehicle miles traveled (VMT) as a primary measure of exposure, allowing for the calculation of collision and fatality rates rather than relying solely on raw counts. Where VMT data was unavailable for specific parameters, such as driver age groups, surrogate measures like population figures or vehicle registration numbers were used. The report organizes data into three main sections: an overview of trends, detailed breakdowns by demographic and vehicle factors, and supplementary technical information. Key findings indicate that 2007 marked a historic low for traffic fatalities in Washington, with a rate of 1.00 fatalities per 100 million VMT. This rate was 27% lower than the national average of 1.37. Between 1980 and 2007, Washington’s overall fatality rate declined by 71%, outpacing the national decline of 59%. In 2007, there were 128,888 total collisions, resulting in 568 fatalities and 59,065 injuries. The data provides granular breakdowns by county, city, and road functional class (state routes, city streets, county roads). Specific analyses cover contributing circumstances such as alcohol impairment, speeding, and seat belt usage, as well as collision types involving motorcycles, pedestrians, and pedal cyclists. For instance, the report details motorcycle collision trends from 1971 to 2007 and identifies leading driver contributing circumstances by region. The significance of this report lies in its role as a foundational resource for traffic safety planning. By providing standardized, exposure-adjusted data, it enables stakeholders to identify high-risk areas and behaviors. The document highlights Washington’s success in reducing fatality rates relative to the national trend while offering detailed insights into specific collision dynamics. This information supports the development of targeted safety programs and infrastructure improvements. The report also includes legal disclaimers noting that the data is protected under United States Code 23 Section 409 and cannot be used as evidence in civil litigation against the state or its agencies.

Key finding

Washington State achieved a historic low traffic fatality rate of 1.00 per 100 million vehicle miles traveled in 2007, which was 27% lower than the national average of 1.37.

Methodology

dataset

Sample size: 128888

Provenance

The full processing record for this entry. Every stage of this paper's journey through the pipeline is logged — what ran, with which tool and model, how many attempts it took, and when it last completed. Discovered via bulk_ingest_rosap on 2026-05-23 (6 acquisition events logged).

Summary generated by qwen3.6-27b-prismaquant on 2026-06-10; verification: verified.

Topics

Ranked by relevance to this paper. Hover a topic for its definition.

• incidence prevalence

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