CPD: Vehicle crashes down in 2008

January 29, 2009 |

The intersection at Madison Street/41A-Bypass/Hwy 76 remains the city’s most dangerous intersection.

In the ideal world there would be no vehicle crashes. But, in the world we live in, they happen and, unfortunately, property is damaged and injuries often occur as a result of those crashes. In Clarksville, highway accidents were drown by a dramatic 624 last year, according to the Clarksville Police Department spokesman Jim Knoll.

The Police Department has been addressing the issue of traffic crashes through a multi-faceted approach. They identify the areas with the highest number of crashes and increase traffic enforcement activities in those problem areas. Also, the Police Department took advantage of a Governor Highway Safety Office grant which helped fund putting additional officers on the street to combat impaired driving.

Additionally, training classes to detect impaired drivers improved officer’s ability to get impaired drivers off of the streets before accidents occur. This approach has proved to be a winning combination.

The numbers have been tallied for 2008 and vehicle crashes in the City of Clarksville are down from 2007. There were 624 less crashes for 2008 (2747) than 2007 (3371). The Police Department’s driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs (DUI) arrests increased in 2008 (927) by 154 from the 2007 (773) numbers. The number of alcohol related crashes is also down from 2007. In 2008, there was 205 alcohol related crashes compared to 242 for 2007.

There is added significance to those figures when you consider that in 2007, there were 11 fatal crashes resulting in 14 deaths; three of those may have been alcohol related. In 2008, there were 7 fatal crashes, resulting in 7 deaths; two of those may have involved alcohol.

Let’s take a look at some other comparisons between 2007 and 2008. In 2007, there were 1148 crashes which involved some sort of injury, compared to 2008, which had 982; the injuries ranged from minor to fatal. In both 2007 and 2008, the day and time when more crashes occurred were identical – Fridays around 5 p.m. The main reasons for the crashes flip-flopped between 2007 and 2008.

In 2007, the main reasons for the 3371 crashes were: 1) Failure to Yield (842) and 2) Following Improperly (806).

In 2008, of the 2747 crashes, the reasons were the same but reversed the order: 1) Following Improperly (642) and 2) Failure to Yield (621).

The following may be of interest to drivers of all ages. The figures below represent the age of the individuals who were determined to be “at fault” during the crash investigations (See Note):

Age group:  (from 2007 to 20082008
19 and under: from  540 to 457
20-2: from  746 to 607
26-30: from 403 to 316
31-35: from 275 to 213
36-40: from 239 to 184
41-45: from 214 to 188
46-50: from 184 to 163
51-55: from 131 to 138
56-60: from  105 to 91
61-65: from 83 to 80
66-70:  61 to 53
Over 70: from 118 to 121

Note: You will notice the figures do not add up to the crash totals for 2007 and 2008. Some accidents were hit and run or fault could not be determined in some cases.

If you are trying to figure out around town where most accidents occur, then take a look at the following list. The intersections with the most crashes in 2008 (asterisk (*)indicates they were also in Top 10 in 2007) were:

1. * Madison Street/41A-Bypass/Hwy 76
2. * Wilma Rudolph Blvd & Trenton Rd
3. * Wilma Rudolph Blvd & Dunbar Cave Rd
4. * Riverside Dr./North 2nd/Providence Blvd/Kraft Street
5. * Wilma Rudolph Blvd & I-24
6. * 76 Connector & I-24
7. * Ft Campbell Blvd & Gate 3
8. 101st Airborne Div Pkwy & Trenton Rd
9. Memorial Dr. & Richview Rd
10. * Ft Campbell Blvd & 101st Airborne Div Pkwy.

If you summarize Clarksville’s 2008 crash stats, it all it comes down to this: accidents were down by 624;

• DUI arrests increased by 154;
• more crashes happen on Fridays around 5 p.m.;
• drivers between the ages of “20-25” had most “at fault” accidents;
• the #1 crash intersection for 2008 was at the intersection of Madison Street/41A-Bypass/Hwy 76.

The challenge continues for the Police Department as they try to further reduce crashes in 2009.

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