2008 Washington State collision data summary
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Summary
This document, titled "2008 Washington State Collision Data Summary," is a statistical report produced by the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) Transportation Data Office. It addresses the need for comprehensive traffic safety data by compiling collision information from all public roadways in Washington State for the year 2008. The data originates 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 report aims to provide stakeholders, including government agencies and private organizations, with detailed insights into collision frequencies, rates, contributing circumstances, and multi-year trends to inform safety programs. The methodology involves the collection, processing, and analysis of collision reports to determine location and relevant data points. The report utilizes vehicle miles traveled (VMT) as a primary measure of exposure to calculate collision rates, allowing for standardized comparisons across different road classes, counties, and metropolitan areas. Where VMT data was unavailable, such as for specific driver age groups, surrogate measures like population figures or vehicle registration numbers were used. The analysis covers collisions sorted by injury severity, jurisdiction (state routes, city streets, county roads), and specific factors such as alcohol involvement, speed, and pedestrian or motorcycle involvement. The data presented reflects a snapshot available as of July 28, 2009. Key findings indicate that 2008 marked a historic low for traffic fatalities in Washington State. The state’s traffic fatality rate decreased to 0.94 per 100 million vehicle miles traveled, which was 35% below the 2008 U.S. national average of 1.27. Between 1980 and 2008, Washington’s overall fatality rate declined by 73%, outperforming the national decline of 62%. In 2008, there were 119,410 total collisions on all public roads, resulting in 520 fatalities and 37,195 injuries. The majority of collisions (79,981) resulted in property damage only. Alcohol was involved in 8,516 collisions, and 6,941 vehicles had drivers with impaired ability. The report provides granular breakdowns by county and city, highlighting that urban centers like Seattle, Tacoma, and Spokane accounted for the highest absolute numbers of collisions and fatalities, while rural areas often had higher rates per mile traveled. The significance of this report lies in its role as a foundational resource for traffic safety planning and policy. By identifying trends and high-risk areas, WSDOT and other agencies can target safety interventions more effectively. The data underscores the success of long-term safety initiatives in Washington, evidenced by the record-low fatality rate. Furthermore, the detailed categorization of collisions by type, location, and contributing factors allows for a nuanced understanding of traffic safety challenges, supporting evidence-based decisions to reduce future collisions and injuries. The report also serves as a historical benchmark for comparing future safety performance against past data.
Key finding
Washington State's 2008 traffic fatality rate was 0.94 per 100 million vehicle miles traveled, the lowest in state history and 35% below the national average.
Methodology
dataset
Sample size: 119410
Provenance
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| Stage | Outcome | Tool | Model | Prompt | Attempts | Completed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| discover | success | rosap | — | — | 2 | 2026-05-23 |
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| extract | success | cached | — | — | 2 | 2026-06-10 |
| clean | success | — | — | — | 1 | 2026-06-01 |
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| embed | success | — | — | — | 1 | 2026-06-02 |
| enrich | success | — | — | — | 1 | 2026-05-23 |
| promote | success | — | — | — | 1 | 2026-05-23 |
| summarize | success | llm | qwen3.6-27b-prismaquant | summ-v5 | 3 | 2026-06-10 |
| tag | success | vector_similarity | — | — | 19 | 2026-06-11 |
| verify | success | — | — | — | 2 | 2026-06-10 |
Summary generated by qwen3.6-27b-prismaquant on 2026-06-10; verification: verified.
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- Empirical Findings: crash risk outcomes