Fatal crash profile · State

Traffic deaths in Illinois in 2021

State in United States

Deaths, 2021
1,334
Fatal crashes
1,210
Population
12.7M

In 2021, 1,334 people died in 1,210 fatal crashes in Illinois, about 4 a day. That was 11.8% more than in 2020 (1,193) and the most since 2005. The death rate was 10.5 per 100,000 residents, compared with 13.0 in the United States. Illinois had the 7th most traffic deaths of the 51 states and DC and the 37th-highest death rate. Pedestrians accounted for 16% of deaths, and 35% of fatal crashes were speeding-related.

Deaths

Traffic deaths

10.5

deaths per 100,000 residents in 2021

  • About 80 percent of the rate in the United States: 13.0

+12%

change in deaths from 2020 to 2021

1,193 deaths in 2020, 1,334 in 2021

  • The United States: +11%

Illinois traffic deaths by year goes back to 1975.

Profile by year: 2024 · 2023 · 2022 · 2021 · 2020

Road users

Who died

16%

of deaths were pedestrians

  • About the same as the share in the United States: 17%
Who died in 2021
Category Deaths
Vehicle occupants and others 915
Pedestrians 209
Motorcyclists 176
Cyclists 34
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Deaths by type, 2021
Type Deaths Share in Illinois Share in the US
Pedestrians 209 16% 17%
Motorcyclists 176 13% 14%
Cyclists 34 3% 2%
Alcohol-impaired driving crashes 457 34% 31%
Speeding-related crashes 488 37% 29%

Alcohol-impaired and speeding-related count everyone killed in those crashes, so a death can appear in more than one row.

Crash factors

Speeding, alcohol, night and weekend crashes

35%

of fatal crashes were speeding-related

  • About 1.2 times the share in the United States: 28%

27%

of fatal crashes involved a drinking driver

  • About the same as the share in the United States: 26%
Crash factors in 2021
Category Illinois United States
Speeding-related 26.7% 26.3%
Alcohol-involved 34.5% 28.2%
At night 56.1% 53.9%
At weekends 34.5% 32.8%

Share of fatal crashes. Alcohol-involved means a police-reported drinking driver.

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Timing

When crashes happen

56%

of fatal crashes happened at night

  • About the same as the share in the United States: 54%

35%

of fatal crashes happened at weekends

  • About the same as the share in the United States: 33%
Fatal crashes by hour of day
Category Fatal crashes
12am 57
1am 57
2am 45
3am 55
4am 44
5am 37
6am 34
7am 29
8am 27
9am 30
10am 40
11am 48
12pm 41
1pm 54
2pm 43
3pm 59
4pm 57
5pm 57
6pm 73
7pm 52
8pm 68
9pm 68
10pm 56
11pm 67

All crashes 2021.

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Fatal crashes by day of week
Category Fatal crashes
Sun 206
Mon 171
Tue 128
Wed 159
Thu 141
Fri 193
Sat 212

All crashes 2021.

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Fatal crashes by month
Category Fatal crashes
Jan 61
Feb 52
Mar 85
Apr 86
May 115
Jun 109
Jul 116
Aug 133
Sep 134
Oct 114
Nov 113
Dec 92

All crashes 2021.

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Conditions

Weather and light

Weather at the time of the crash
Category Fatal crashes
Clear 1,036
Rain 84
Cloudy 34
Snow 19
Fog, Smog, Smoke 10
Other 3

All crashes 2021. Crashes where conditions were not reported are left out.

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Light conditions at the time of the crash
Category Fatal crashes
Daylight 532
Dark - Lighted 304
Dark - Not Lighted 277
Dark - Unknown Lighting 42
Dawn 21
Dusk 21

All crashes 2021. Crashes where conditions were not reported are left out.

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Roads and vehicles

Where and what, 2021

Roads with the most fatal crashes

  1. I-5525
  2. I-5725
  3. I-9419
  4. I-29013
  5. I-8012
  6. I-888
  7. SR-298
  8. I-707
  9. US-307
  10. I-2947

Road names as recorded in police reports.

Vehicles involved, by type
Category Vehicles
Cars 794
SUVs 397
Motorcycles 182
Pickup trucks 177
Medium and heavy trucks 177
Vans 85
Other vehicles 80
Buses 5
Other light trucks 3

All crashes 2021.

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Vehicles most often involved

  1. Chevrolet Silverado41
  2. Jeep Grand Cherokee34
  3. Freightliner Cascadia31
  4. Ford F-15031
  5. Chevrolet Malibu31
  6. Toyota Camry29
  7. Honda Civic27
  8. Chevrolet Impala27
  9. Ford Focus26
  10. Chevrolet Equinox26

Reflects how common a vehicle is as well as crash involvement; not a safety rating.

Crashes

Fatal crashes

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Fatal crashes in 2021. Crashes without reported coordinates are not shown.

Filter crashes
Crash factors
Date Location Deaths
Nov 2, 2021 Thornton, Cook County 1
Nov 2, 2021 Dolton, Cook County 1
Nov 2, 2021 Belvidere, Boone County 1
Nov 2, 2021 Chicago, Cook County 1
Nov 1, 2021 Harvey, Cook County 1
Oct 31, 2021 Chicago, Cook County 1
Oct 31, 2021 DeKalb County 1
Oct 31, 2021 Calumet Park, Cook County 1
Oct 31, 2021 Kendall County 1
Oct 31, 2021 Chicago, Cook County 1
Oct 30, 2021 Lisle, DuPage County 3
Oct 30, 2021 Champaign County 1
Oct 30, 2021 Chicago, Cook County 1
Oct 30, 2021 Chicago, Cook County 2
Oct 29, 2021 Mason County 1
Oct 29, 2021 Normal, McLean County 1
Oct 29, 2021 Gallatin County 1
Oct 28, 2021 Joliet, Will County 1
Oct 27, 2021 Chicago, Cook County 1
Oct 27, 2021 Milan, Rock Island County 1
Oct 27, 2021 Alto Pass, Union County 1
Oct 26, 2021 Riverdale, Cook County 1
Oct 26, 2021 Elk Grove Village, Cook County 1
Oct 25, 2021 Park Forest, Cook County 1
Oct 24, 2021 McLean County 1

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Nearby and related

Counties in Illinois in 2021

Area Deaths, 2021 Per 100,000
Adams County 6 9.2
Alexander County 4 79.6
Bond County 6 35.7
Boone County 10 18.8
Brown County 0 —
Bureau County 14 42.4
Calhoun County 2 45.6
Carroll County 1 6.4
Cass County 1 7.8
Champaign County 22 10.6
Christian County 13 38.6
Clark County 1 6.5
Clay County 2 15.2
Clinton County 8 21.7
Coles County 8 16.8
Cook County 458 8.8
Crawford County 1 5.5
Cumberland County 5 48.3
De Witt County 3 19.5
DeKalb County 13 12.9
Douglas County 1 5.1
DuPage County 46 5.0
Edgar County 0 —
Edwards County 0 —
Effingham County 11 31.9
Fayette County 10 47.5
Ford County 4 29.7
Franklin County 13 34.7
Fulton County 6 18.0
Gallatin County 1 20.4
Greene County 0 —
Grundy County 10 18.9
Hamilton County 1 12.6
Hancock County 4 23.0
Hardin County 1 27.4
Henderson County 0 —
Henry County 5 10.2
Iroquois County 15 56.0
Jackson County 4 7.5
Jasper County 0 —
Jefferson County 9 24.4
Jersey County 6 28.1
Jo Daviess County 0 —
Johnson County 2 14.8
Kane County 42 8.1
Kankakee County 19 17.8
Kendall County 21 15.5
Knox County 8 16.2
LaSalle County 14 12.9
Lake County 37 5.2
Lawrence County 4 26.5
Lee County 3 8.8
Livingston County 5 14.0
Logan County 8 29.4
Macon County 11 10.7
Macoupin County 9 20.2
Madison County 28 10.6
Marion County 4 10.7
Marshall County 3 25.7
Mason County 7 54.6
Massac County 0 —
McDonough County 1 3.7
McHenry County 21 6.7
McLean County 13 7.6
Menard County 1 8.2
Mercer County 4 25.7
Monroe County 4 11.4
Montgomery County 9 32.0
Morgan County 5 15.0
Moultrie County 2 13.7
Ogle County 8 15.5
Peoria County 22 12.2
Perry County 1 4.8
Piatt County 4 23.9
Pike County 4 27.4
Pope County 1 26.6
Pulaski County 0 —
Putnam County 1 17.9
Randolph County 7 23.2
Richland County 3 19.0
Rock Island County 8 5.6
Saline County 2 8.6
Sangamon County 24 12.2
Schuyler County 2 29.3
Scott County 1 20.1
Shelby County 7 33.5
St. Clair County 40 15.7
Stark County 2 37.8
Stephenson County 8 18.1
Tazewell County 15 11.5
Union County 3 17.6
Vermilion County 8 10.9
Wabash County 2 17.8
Warren County 3 18.0
Washington County 1 7.3
Wayne County 3 18.8
White County 3 21.8
Whiteside County 10 18.1
Will County 70 10.0
Williamson County 9 13.5
Winnebago County 49 17.3
Woodford County 3 7.8

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Source: NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), 2021. A fatal crash is one in which at least one person died within 30 days. Population: US Census Bureau estimates.