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HomeNewsClarksville Police Department releases 2018 Traffic Crash Statistics

Clarksville Police Department releases 2018 Traffic Crash Statistics

Clarksville Police Department (CPD) 

Clarksville Police Department - CPDClarksville, TN – In an effort to educate the public and promote safer driving habits, the Clarksville Police Department has compiled some statistics related to motor vehicle crashes for 2018 in the city limits of Clarksville.

The 2018 estimates for population within the city limits of Clarksville is approximately 153,000 and with inclusion of the county, pushes the population directly influencing traffic within city limits to about 200,000.

Clarksville Police Department reports that in 2018, there were 7220 crashes compared to 6684 in 2017, an increase of 536 crashes.
Clarksville Police Department reports that in 2018, there were 7220 crashes compared to 6684 in 2017, an increase of 536 crashes.

That is approximately a 15 to 16 percent increase in population since the 2010 census.

In 2018, there were 7220 crashes compared to 6684 in 2017, an increase of 536 crashes.

Even though there was an increase in total crashes overall, there was a three percent reduction of injury crashes from 2017 to 2018.

The Top Five Major Roadways for 2018 Crashes were

  1. Wilma Rudolph Boulevard – 1070 crashes
  2. Fort Campbell Boulevard – 739 crashes
  3. Madison Street – 544
  4. SR-374 (commonly referred to as Warfield Boulevard, 101st Airborne Division Parkway) – 480
  5. Trenton Road – 430

The five major crash roadways account for 44 percent of the total crashes and 38 percent of the injury crashes in the city.

The Top Five Contributing Factors for Crashes were

  1. Following Improperly – 1754
  2. Failure to Obey Traffic Controls, Failure to Yield Right of Way, Failure to Observe Warnings – 1301
  3. Improper Backing – 747
  4. Aggressive, Distracted Driving – 540
  5. Failure to Keep in Lane, Improper Lane change, Driving Wrong Way or Side of the Roadway – 444

Additionally, Failure to Obey Traffic Controls, Failure to Yield Right of Way, Failure to Observe Warnings resulted in the most injury crashes, 368, with Following Improperly a close second with 335. Most crashes occurred on Fridays and in second place was Thursdays.

In 2018 there were 20 fatality crashes compared to 13 in 2017.

The Top Factors for the 2018 Fatality Crashes were

  1. Failure to Obey Traffic Controls/Yield Right of Way – 7
  2. Aggressive/Distracted Driving – 5
  3. Exceeding Posted Speed Limit, Speed Too Fast for Conditions – 4

Included under the 20 fatality crashes, were six pedestrian fatalities. All of the pedestrian fatalities occurred after dusk. Four were wearing dark clothing while attempting to cross a major roadway. In three cases, alcohol usage was suspected. There were two female and four male fatalities which ranged in ages from 22-71 years of age.

There have been 163 crashes involving pedestrians, in Clarksville, since Jan 2015. There were two pedestrian fatalities in 2017. Tennessee has seen a 23 percent increase in collisions involving pedestrians according to the Governor’s Highway Safety Association.

The Clarksville Police Department is taking a multi-faceted approach to reducing crashes and saving lives in 2019. CPD will be using high visibility traffic enforcement on major highways and target crash factors such as speeding, inattentive driving, following too closely and DUIs. We will continue to take part in the Tennessee Highway Safety Office’s saturation events, such as “Booze It & Lose It” which targets impaired drivers.

Additionally, we will place an emphasis on educating the public on the safety aspect of wearing seatbelts and follow up through enforcement efforts with “Click It or Ticket” further solidifying the need to wear seatbelts. Clarksville Police are working in conjunction with Fort Campbell to educate and raise awareness of factors involving military members.

Along with the enforcement, we will be ramping up education programs such as the student traffic awareness training classes, increased social media and public service announcements, and continue to disseminate information with the use of message boards.

The volume and density of traffic will increase as the population in Clarksville and surrounding areas continue to grow. Clarksville Police will continue to strive to reduce crashes and ensure the roadways are safe for the drivers of Clarksville.

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