Speed kills. It’s not the speed itself of course, but this sudden stop that shakes your internal organs into a pulp or makes you tumble in the air en route to another sudden stop. In fact, speed has consequences and not all drivers on the road are created equal.
The good news is that speed-related deaths in the United States have declined over the past decade, particularly among the youngest 15 to 19 year olds. This happens despite the speed limits that have generally increased in many regions, but there are still parts of the country where speed-related road accidents are tragically high.
Compare Auto Insurance deepened the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s data from 2013 to 2017, examining speed-related deaths in various cities. Here’s a breakdown of the top 15 where speeding fatalities are the worst as a percentage of total road fatalities.
| City | Speeding accidents (PCT) | Speed victims | Total road accidents | Population |
| North Las Vegas, NV | 53.9% | 41 | 76 | 234,389 |
| Irving, TX | 52.2% | 48 | 92 | 235,648 |
| Cleveland, OH | 51.9% | 94 | 181 | 388,812 |
| Fontana, California | 50.7% | 36 | 71 | 207,086 |
| Plano, TX | 49.2% | 31 | 63 | 281,566 |
| Washington DC. | 49.2% | 61 | 124 | 672,391 |
| Saint Louis, MO | 48.6% | 121 | 249 | 314,867 |
| Milwaukee, WI | 47.3% | 131 | 277 | 599,086 |
| Chicago, IL | 43.4% | 278 | 640 | 2,722,586 |
| Aurora, CO | 42.9% | 51 | 119 | 357,323 |
| Fresno, California | 42.6% | 72 | 169 | 519,037 |
| Yonkers, NY | 42.1% | 16 | 38 | 200,999 |
| Chula Vista, California | 41.7% | 25 | 60 | 264,101 |
| Stockton, California | 40.7% | 55 | 135 | 304,358 |
| Charlotte, North Carolina | 40.6% | 159 | 392 |
826,060 |
As the graph shows, the worst percentage does not equate to speed-related road crashes. Chicago tops the list of 15 in this department with 278 deaths reported from 2013 to 2017, although its population of nearly 3 million is 10 times that of many cities in this group. Yonkers had the fewest speed-related deaths at age 16.
Click the source link below to view the full results of the study and a complete list of 111 cities in the United States.
