Fatal crash profile · State

Traffic deaths in Pennsylvania in 2021

State in United States

Deaths, 2021
1,230
Fatal crashes
1,153
Population
13M

In 2021, 1,230 people died in 1,153 fatal crashes in Pennsylvania, about 3 a day. That was 8.9% more than in 2020 (1,129) and the most since 2012. The death rate was 9.4 per 100,000 residents, compared with 13.0 in the United States. Pennsylvania had the 9th most traffic deaths of the 51 states and DC and the 40th-highest death rate. Pedestrians accounted for 14% of deaths, and 40% of fatal crashes were speeding-related.

Deaths

Traffic deaths

9.4

deaths per 100,000 residents in 2021

  • About three-quarters of the rate in the United States: 13.0

+9%

change in deaths from 2020 to 2021

1,129 deaths in 2020, 1,230 in 2021

  • The United States: +11%

Pennsylvania traffic deaths by year goes back to 1975.

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

Road users

Who died

14%

of deaths were pedestrians

  • About 85 percent of the share in the United States: 17%
Who died in 2021
Category Deaths
Vehicle occupants and others 803
Pedestrians 176
Motorcyclists 230
Cyclists 21
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Deaths by type, 2021
Type Deaths Share in Pennsylvania Share in the US
Pedestrians 176 14% 17%
Motorcyclists 230 19% 14%
Cyclists 21 2% 2%
Alcohol-impaired driving crashes 331 27% 31%
Speeding-related crashes 500 41% 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

40%

of fatal crashes were speeding-related

  • About 1.4 times the share in the United States: 28%

24%

of fatal crashes involved a drinking driver

  • About the same as the share in the United States: 26%
Crash factors in 2021
Category Pennsylvania United States
Speeding-related 24.1% 26.3%
Alcohol-involved 39.6% 28.2%
At night 48.7% 53.9%
At weekends 31.0% 32.8%

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

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Timing

When crashes happen

49%

of fatal crashes happened at night

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

31%

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 40
1am 41
2am 39
3am 26
4am 23
5am 28
6am 44
7am 33
8am 33
9am 31
10am 42
11am 46
12pm 37
1pm 58
2pm 71
3pm 57
4pm 67
5pm 71
6pm 56
7pm 67
8pm 74
9pm 64
10pm 50
11pm 54

All crashes 2021.

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Fatal crashes by day of week
Category Fatal crashes
Sun 176
Mon 154
Tue 137
Wed 142
Thu 151
Fri 212
Sat 181

All crashes 2021.

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Fatal crashes by month
Category Fatal crashes
Jan 74
Feb 57
Mar 85
Apr 76
May 93
Jun 109
Jul 99
Aug 128
Sep 108
Oct 131
Nov 94
Dec 99

All crashes 2021.

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Conditions

Weather and light

Weather at the time of the crash
Category Fatal crashes
Clear 928
Rain 85
Cloudy 70
Snow 15
Freezing Rain or Drizzle 8
Other 7

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 596
Dark - Not Lighted 270
Dark - Lighted 236
Dusk 25
Dawn 14
Dark - Unknown Lighting 5

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. US-30 LINCOLN HW16
  2. I-76 MAINLINE TPKE14
  3. I-81 AMERICAN LEGION MEM HW12
  4. US-30 LINCOLN HWY9
  5. US-1 ROOSEVELT BLVD8
  6. I-81 AMERICAN LEGION MEM HWY7
  7. US-22 WILLIAM PENN HWY6
  8. US-422 BENJAMIN FRANKLIN HW6
  9. SR-3007 KELLY DR5
  10. SR-611 BROAD ST5

Road names as recorded in police reports.

Vehicles involved, by type
Category Vehicles
Cars 671
SUVs 371
Motorcycles 235
Pickup trucks 191
Medium and heavy trucks 165
Vans 69
Other vehicles 50
Buses 6
Other light trucks 3

All crashes 2021.

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Vehicles most often involved

  1. Chevrolet Silverado38
  2. Honda Accord36
  3. Honda Civic36
  4. Ford F-15032
  5. Freightliner Cascadia29
  6. Hyundai Elantra27
  7. Toyota RAV424
  8. Ford Focus22
  9. Jeep Grand Cherokee21
  10. Chevrolet Impala19

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
Dec 31, 2021 Mechanicsburg, Cumberland County 1
Dec 31, 2021 Crawford County 1
Dec 31, 2021 Perry County 1
Dec 31, 2021 Philadelphia, Philadelphia County 1
Dec 30, 2021 New Kensington, Westmoreland County 1
Dec 29, 2021 Montgomery County 1
Dec 28, 2021 Bensalem, Bucks County 1
Dec 28, 2021 Crawford County 1
Dec 27, 2021 Big Run, Jefferson County 1
Dec 27, 2021 North Buffalo, Armstrong County 2
Dec 27, 2021 Pittsburgh, Allegheny County 1
Dec 26, 2021 Philadelphia, Philadelphia County 1
Dec 26, 2021 Pleasant Hill, Allegheny County 1
Dec 25, 2021 Bucks County 1
Dec 25, 2021 Fulton County 1
Dec 24, 2021 Carbon County 3
Dec 24, 2021 Honey Brook, Chester County 1
Dec 24, 2021 Lancaster County 1
Dec 24, 2021 McKean County 1
Dec 24, 2021 Bucks County 2
Dec 24, 2021 Bucks County 1
Dec 23, 2021 Philadelphia, Philadelphia County 1
Dec 23, 2021 Crawford County 1
Dec 23, 2021 Nanticoke, Luzerne County 1
Dec 23, 2021 Schuylkill County 1

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Nearby and related

Counties in Pennsylvania in 2021

Area Deaths, 2021 Per 100,000
Adams County 11 10.4
Allegheny County 68 5.5
Armstrong County 11 16.8
Beaver County 10 6.0
Bedford County 14 29.5
Berks County 46 10.7
Blair County 7 5.7
Bradford County 9 15.0
Bucks County 55 8.5
Butler County 18 9.1
Cambria County 7 5.3
Cameron County 1 22.4
Carbon County 11 16.8
Centre County 10 6.3
Chester County 34 6.3
Clarion County 7 18.6
Clearfield County 14 17.9
Clinton County 7 18.4
Columbia County 5 7.7
Crawford County 19 22.8
Cumberland County 24 9.0
Dauphin County 41 14.2
Delaware County 25 4.3
Elk County 4 13.0
Erie County 21 7.8
Fayette County 15 11.8
Forest County 1 14.5
Franklin County 15 9.6
Fulton County 6 41.2
Greene County 3 8.5
Huntingdon County 9 20.5
Indiana County 11 13.2
Jefferson County 6 13.6
Juniata County 7 30.0
Lackawanna County 19 8.8
Lancaster County 73 13.1
Lawrence County 11 12.9
Lebanon County 26 18.1
Lehigh County 30 8.0
Luzerne County 41 12.6
Lycoming County 21 18.5
McKean County 5 12.4
Mercer County 11 10.0
Mifflin County 5 10.8
Monroe County 27 16.0
Montgomery County 39 4.5
Montour County 2 11.1
Northampton County 13 4.1
Northumberland County 7 7.7
Perry County 5 10.9
Philadelphia County 133 8.4
Pike County 4 6.7
Potter County 3 18.4
Schuylkill County 26 18.2
Snyder County 4 10.1
Somerset County 12 16.4
Sullivan County 0 —
Susquehanna County 6 15.6
Tioga County 10 24.2
Union County 6 14.1
Venango County 12 24.0
Warren County 5 13.1
Washington County 23 10.9
Wayne County 10 19.5
Westmoreland County 36 10.2
Wyoming County 7 26.8
York County 46 10.0

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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.