Virginia Traffic Deaths Rise In 2020 Despite Fewer Cars On Road

VIRGINIA — Traffic fatalities were up 2 percent across Virginia in 2020, even though traffic crashes were down 21 percent compared to 2019, according to preliminary data by the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles.

Fewer cars and less traffic on the road during the pandemic did not reduce the risk of dying in a car crash across the state in 2020. In fact, as traffic volume dropped, vehicle speeds increased, which played a significant factor in the rise in the fatality rate on the nation’s roadways

Some drivers were willing to take advantage of the reduced number of cars on the road to engage in dangerous driving. Speed-related deaths in Virginia were up 16 percent in 2020 compared to a year earlier, a data review by AAA Mid-Atlantic found.

“Sadly, some drivers saw empty lanes and open roads, resulting from the pandemic lockdowns as an invitation to behave irresponsibly and dangerously behind the wheel,” John B. Townsend II, AAA Mid-Atlantic’s manager of public and government affairs, said Tuesday in a statement. “Far too many drivers engaged in speeding, aggressive and reckless driving, drinking alcohol and not buckling up, putting themselves and others in danger.”

In early April 2020, as the pandemic was growing worse and stay-at-home orders were going into effect, Inrix, a transportation data company, estimates that vehicle miles traveled dropped by 46 percent in that time period. For 2020, lower traffic counts meant the Washington, D.C., area dropped from the nation’s fifth most congested region to the 12th, according to the Inrix 2020 Global Traffic Scorecard.

RELATED: Pandemic Revs Up Bad Driver Behavior, Traffic Deaths In Virginia

In the early months of the pandemic, the amount of traffic on roads in Northern Virginia fell dramatically. The temporary stay-at-home order due to the coronavirus was in effect in Virginia from March 30, 2020, to June 10, 2020, limiting trips outside the home for essential services only.

The Virginia Department of Transportation reported that there were fewer vehicles on the road during the stay-at-home orders, resulting in a 45 percent decrease in the number of crashes.

Despite the decline, an increasing number of U.S. drivers were making dangerous, risky decisions on the road.

In 2020, law enforcement agencies across Virginia shared numerous citations on social media where drivers were ticketed for speeds in the triple digits. On May 2, 2020 alone, at least eight drivers were stopped in Virginia for going over 100 miles per hour. One driver was clocked in Fairfax County doing 132 miles per hour on Interstate 95 in Fairfax County, according to the Virginia State Police.

Despite the big reduction in traffic, there were 406 speed-related deaths in Virginia in 2020 compared to 349 in 2019. Last year, speed-related fatalities made up nearly half of all deaths on the road statewide, compared to 42 percent in 2019, according to the Virginia DMV.

The number of crashes involving alcohol, cell phones, teen drivers and motorcycles were down last year compared to 2019. But the number of fatalities in each of those categories was up.

Teen-involved driver crashes, for example, were down 21 percent, but the number of deaths in those crashes rose 11 percent in 2020, according to data reviewed by AAA Mid-Atlantic. Alcohol-involved crashes were down 9 percent last year, yet deaths were up 3 percent.

Has the pandemic brought out the worst in drivers? The short answer is yes, though why remains unclear, according to Cathy Chase, president of Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety.

"Perhaps some people always wanted the experience of driving too fast on a near-open highway. Maybe some are more stressed or willing to take on additional risk because of the pandemic and its numerous repercussions," Chase told Patch. "And, drivers are also aware that law enforcement efforts have been reduced and are [likely] 'taking advantage' of the situation."