It may not come as a surprise, but Georgia drivers were just ranked among the worst in the nation, according to a recent study.
QuoteWizard, an online insurance company, just released its annual “Best and Worst Drivers” list after analyzing over 2 million data points from the Federal Highway Administration fatality data.
States were ranked 1-50, No. 1 being the worst and No. 50 being the best, based on the number of accidents, citations, speeding tickets, DUIs and fatalities in 2018.
Georgia was ranked No. 15 on the list, bettering their position from a No. 11 spot in 2017, but still falling among the worst in the country.
Here’s how the other states stacked up:
- Maine
- South Carolina
- Nebraska
- California
- North Dakota
- Minnesota
- Idaho
- Ohio
- Utah
- Washington
- Vermont
- Maryland
- Oregon
- Virginia
- Georgia
- Wyoming
- Wisconsin
- North Carolina
- New Hampshire
- Iowa
- Delaware
- Massachusetts
- Kansas
- New Jersey
- Alaska
- Colorado
- Tennessee
- Hawaii
- Connecticut
- Louisiana
- Montana
- Indiana
- New Mexico
- New York
- South Dakota
- Alabama
- Texas
- Pennsylvania
- Missouri
- Florida
- Kentucky
- Rhode Island
- West Virginia
- Arkansas
- Nevada
- Illinois
- Arizona
- Oklahoma
- Mississippi
- Michigan
Athens Drivers
In 2018, 6,155 accidents were reported in Athens alone. Of these accidents, 316 involved a drunk driver and eight resulted in fatalities.
In a recent Facebook poll, the Athens-Clarke County Police Department identified the top 12 areas for traffic accidents. Of the 6,000+ accidents reported in Athens-Clarke County approximately 77 percent occurred in one of the 12 areas.
The No. 1 region for traffic accidents in 2018 was the Downtown District, followed by No. 2 Atlanta Highway and Georgia Loop, and No. 3 Atlanta Highway at Alps Road/Hawthorne Avenue intersection.
“In all those instances, when we have a large number of vehicles coming through intersections, we’re going to have a large number of accidents there,” said Athens-Clarke County Public Information Officer Geoffrey Gilland.
Gilland said distracted driving is a reoccurring cause of accidents in Athens. With the possibility of rain and winter weather in the upcoming months, Gilland advises Athenians to be safe and stay off the roads.
Madison Lupo is a senior majoring in journalism in the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Georgia.
