New Year’s Eve, even though the best time to celebrate the approaching new year with family and friends, is also one of the year’s deadliest days to be out and about, and on the road.
The Ryan Law Group analyzed data from UC Berkeley’s Transportation & Injury Mapping System (TIMS) from 2017-2020 in Los Angeles County and found that between 100-150 motor vehicle collisions occur every New Year’s Eve. New Year’s Eve collisions see as large as a 25% increase from the day prior.
Of those collisions, between 10-15% are alcohol-involved, as New Year’s Eve tends to be one of the heaviest drinking days of the year.
Based on the historical data, we can expect to see around 100 collisions in Los Angeles County on New Year’s Eve, although the spread of the COVID-19 Omicron variant and thus less people out celebrating may make that number lower.
So how can you avoid being a statistic this New Year’s Eve? If you can’t avoid going out, The Ryan Law Group suggests celebrating locally so that your commute isn’t too far, which decreases the risk of being involved in a motor vehicle collision.
If you will be drinking, be sure to use rideshare or taxi services instead of driving. When out and about, if you must cross the street, be sure to cross in marked crosswalks only. Even if you have the right of way to cross, look both ways before you do.
According to Berkeley TIMS, two of the most common reasons listed for New Year’s Eve crashes are driver failure to yield to pedestrians in both marked and unmarked crosswalks, and pedestrians’ failure to yield to drivers when crossing, or not crossing in a marked crosswalk.
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According to the National Highway and Safety Administration (NHTSA), between the hours of midnight and three a.m. is when drunk drivers are most frequent, and the risk of being involved in a fatal DUI-involved collision is at its highest. So The Ryan Law Group recommends traveling outside of that time frame, and before midnight if possible.
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