Are You More Likely To Get Into A Car Accident In The City Or The Country?

According to the National Highway Transportation Safety Agency (NHTSA), you’re more likely to get into a deadly crash in a rural area than an urban one. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) analysis of NHTSA’s system shows that the ratio of urban deaths versus rural ones continues to fall.

From 2017 to 2021, over 83,000 people died on rural roads, despite only 20% of the U.S. population living outside cities. Rural fatality rates are falling, and the urban-versus-rural death count is getting less stark, with 61% of people who died in car-crashes driving in the country in 2000, compared to 41% in 2024.

However, drivers and passengers in rural areas still have a 1.56% chance of being killed on the road, versus 1.01% in urban areas. Rural driving deaths can be attributed to riskier behavior, poorer sightlines and road conditions, fewer cops and other traffic enforcement, and inconsistently painted lanes on roadways.

Weaker enforcement may be why there are more speeding deaths in rural areas. Prior data showed that rural drivers were more likely to drink and get behind the wheel, but DUI-related deaths are falling for all Americans.

Longer travel times to hospitals and for help to arrive also contribute to higher fatalities in rural areas. In contrast, city dwellers are more likely to die as pedestrians or bicyclists, with over 80% of deaths among bike riders and walkers occurring in densely populated locations.

However, pedestrian fatalities are falling back to more ‘normal’ levels, with a 27% decline in California. Overall, while urban travelers by car die at a higher rate, pedestrian deaths are still a concern, and both rural and urban areas have their unique safety challenges.