Patience on the road: District politicians call for careful driving at the start of school
Take a short ride and experience again what it is like to ride a school bus.
In 21 Texas cities, roads are more dangerous than the national average, a recent study shows. The Lone Star State seems to be notorious for its dangerous roads: Another study released earlier this year found that two of the 10 deadliest U.S. highways run through Texas.
Whether you’re idling during rush hour or narrowly avoiding an accident caused by a negligent driver, it’s easy to assume you share the road with the worst drivers in the state. A study by ConsumerAffairs has collected data to settle the argument. In total, 60 Texas cities with 50,000 or more residents were analyzed for the study.
Do the worst drivers in Texas live in your city? You might be surprised to know that the city claims to have the safest drivers.
Further statistics: Texas is the second worst state for drunk driving. See which state came in first
The number of traffic fatalities in Texas is higher than the national average
Texas had 17% more traffic fatalities in 2022 than the national average. There are more than 15 traffic fatalities per 100,000 residents in Texas. In the rest of the US, the average is less than 13 for the same number of residents.
Galveston is the city with the worst drivers in Texas
Galveston has the worst drivers and had the highest traffic fatality rate of any city in 2022. Nearly 36 out of 100,000 residents lost their lives in car crashes – more than double the state average rate of 15.1 and nearly triple the national average of 12.84.
Galveston’s crash rate was 72% higher than the second worst city in Texas. In 2022, 47% of traffic fatalities were due to speeding, and 42% were due to driving under the influence.
Watch now: Man armed with knife causes chaos after accident
LIST: Top 10 Texas Cities with the Worst Drivers
The five largest cities in Texas rank in the top 20 for poor driving behavior.
The table below compares the cities with the worst drivers. In addition to the accident rating (which is on a scale of 1 to 100), all figures reflect the rates per 100,000 inhabitants.
| City | Crash Score | Total deaths | Accidents caused by “bad driving” | Deaths caused by driving under the influence of alcohol | Deaths due to speeding | Deaths due to positive BAC |
| Galveston | 97.63 | 35.67 | 9.39 | 15.02 | 16,90 | 20.65 |
| San Marcos | 56.60 | 22.34 | 7.45 | 4.47 | 10.43 | 11.91 |
| Wichita Falls | 54.64 | 19.52 | 8.78 | 3.90 | 11.71 | 10.73 |
| Midland | 53.83 | 18.11 | 3.77 | 5.28 | 12.83 | 12.83 |
| Port Arthur | 50.09 | 19.68 | 12.52 | 1.79 | 5.37 | 10.73 |
| Odessa | 46.76 | 18.53 | 4.41 | 2.65 | 8.82 | 12.35 |
| Richardson | 46.59 | 16.94 | 5.93 | 5.08 | 8.47 | 10.16 |
| Baytown | 46.18 | 20.13 | 9.47 | 1.18 | 7.10 | 8.29 |
| Long term | 45.03 | 19.47 | 8.52 | 2.43 | 4.87 | 9.74 |
| Dallas | 44.06 | 17.53 | 4.54 | 4.69 | 8.15 | 9.15 |
League City has the safest drivers in Texas
League City was ranked as the city with the safest drivers among the 60 cities studied. ConsumerAffairs gives the city an accident score of 2.64. Only one traffic fatality in 2022 was due to an incident of poor driving.
League City and Galveston – the city with the worst drivers in Texas – are both located in the greater Houston area and are an hour’s drive from the city proper.
LIST: Top 10 Texas Cities with the Safest Drivers
| City | Crash Score | Total deaths | Accidents caused by “bad driving” | Deaths caused by driving under the influence of alcohol | Deaths due to speeding | Deaths due to positive BAC |
| League City | 2.64 | 0.88 | 0.88 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.88 |
| Frisco | 4.95 | 1.98 | 0.49 | 0.00 | 0.99 | 1.48 |
| Sugarland | 5.45 | 1.82 | 1.82 | 0.00 | 0.91 | 0.91 |
| Mansfield | 8.14 | 2.71 | 2.71 | 0.00 | 1.36 | 1.36 |
| Pflugerville | 9.30 | 4.65 | 1.55 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 3.10 |
| Northern Richland Hills | 9.98 | 4.28 | 1.43 | 0.00 | 1.43 | 2.85 |
| Pearland | 10.44 | 7.23 | 0.80 | 0.00 | 0.80 | 1.61 |
| Plano | 10.53 | 4.56 | 1.40 | 1.40 | 1.05 | 2.11 |
| Victoria | 10.69 | 4.58 | 1.53 | 0.00 | 3.05 | 1.53 |
| Pharr | 12.59 | 3.78 | 2.52 | 1.26 | 2.52 | 2.52 |
How the ranking works
In the latest study, ConsumerAffairs analyzed 60 Texas cities with at least 50,000 residents. Vehicle crash data was collected from the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration’s (NHTSA) Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS).
The study’s rankings do not necessarily reflect the highest number of traffic fatalities overall. Instead, the data collected also included accidents that were caused by driver negligence. Each city received accident scores calculated by adding the following five factors:
- Number of accidents due to driving errors per 100,000 people
- Number of deaths caused by accidents per 100,000 people
- Number of fatalities due to speeding per 100,000 inhabitants
- Number of deaths due to driving under the influence of alcohol per 100,000 people
- Number of deaths with positive blood alcohol concentration per 100,000 people
What are examples of “bad driving”?
ConsumerAffairs cites the following examples of “bad driving”:
- Aggressive driving/aggression in traffic
- Careless driving, inattentive operation, improper driving, driving without due care
- Driving on the wrong side of a two-lane road (intentionally or unintentionally)
- Driving the wrong way on a one-way street
- Disregarding the right of way
- Wrong compliance
- Improper lane usage
- Improper or irregular lane changes
- Other improper phrases
- Unpredictable, reckless or negligent driving of the vehicle
- Inexperience of the operator
- Overtaking when prohibited by signs, road markings or school buses warning “Overtaking prohibited”
- Overtaking with too little distance or insufficient visibility or failure to give way to overtaking vehicles
