Texas drivers may want to pay extra attention on the roads this upcoming holiday weekend.
A new study found that Dallas is among the most dangerous cities in the nation for driving during the Labor Day holiday.
Jerry, an American insurance company based in Palo Alto, California, conducted a study compiling Labor Day traffic deaths from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the U.S. Census Bureau over nine years from 2012 to 2021. The organization compiled the data to pinpoint the most perilous locations for travel over the holiday weekend, as well as which times of day present the most danger.
The study found that Dallas was among the top three deadliest cities for Labor Day travel in the United States, ranking No.2 with 26 deaths between 2012 and 2021, beaten only by Los Angeles with 34 deaths.
In addition to having one of the deadliest cities for Labor Day travel, the State of Texas as a whole was also ranked as the second most dangerous in the nation after California. Florida ranked third. These three states had almost twice the number of fatal crashes as those below them and, in some cases, three times as many.
The study also recorded which days were the most dangerous. Overall, Saturdays were found to be the most deadly, having a total of 1,289 crashes. Tuesday had the fewest fatalities, with only 143.
As for the Labor Day weekend traffic, the American Automobile Association (AAA) offered some advice.
“Most travelers will leave on Thursday or Friday before Labor Day to take advantage of the long holiday weekend,” advised AAA Travel’s Senior Vice President Paula Twidale.
As a result, August 31 between 2 p.m. and 6 p.m. is predicted to be the busiest for road travel, and September 1 will have “higher than normal” traffic levels from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., AAA reported.
“The best times to travel by car over Labor Day weekend are early in the morning or in the evening,” said Bob Pishue, an analyst at national transportation data provider INRIX, according to AAA. “If you must travel during heavy traffic, navigation apps and local departments of transportation can help steer drivers around long delays.”
The Texas Department of Transportation has also noted that travel on the roads over the Labor Day weekend can be a dangerous endeavor, particularly due to drunk driving.
Labor Day in 2021 was the second deadliest holiday of the year, the National Safety Council reported. A total of 156 deaths occurred during this period, just barely being ousted by Independence Day with 159.