This minivan was wrecked in a fatal crash on Interstate 696 this month. But you're wrong if you think July is the deadliest driving month. (Clarence Tabb Jr. / The Detroit News)
Everyone who believes that summertime driving -- with its longer daylight hours and vacation getaways -- is the most dangerous time to be on the road, raise your hands.
You're all wrong.
That's the conclusion of a recent study by Michael Sivak of the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute. Siva combed through monthly national fatality rates based on distance driven from 1994 to 2006 and discovered that fatality rates are highest in the fall.
Specifically, the most dangerous month is October, followed by November and December. The month with the lowest fatality rate is March, followed by February and April. "The risk of a fatality per distance driven in October is about 16 percent greater than the risk in March," Sivak said.
"At first glance, logically, it would seem that the snow and ice of winter weather would increase one's driving risks," he said. Many times people drive slower in inclement weather, which makes it harder to judge why October, not the winter months, is the most dangerous, Sivak said. One factor could be the duration of darkness, which increases in the fall.
The study also showed the deadliest day the week and time of day for driving.
Not surprisingly, Friday and Saturday are the most dangerous days to be on the road, with the greatest risk at 3 a.m. Sunday (just after the bars get out.) The safest time is noon Sunday.
While the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety doesn't conduct multi-year fatality studies, its statistics from 2007 practically mirror Sivak's findings, with one exception: it showed that July -- with 3,447 deaths -- was the deadliest month for fatal crashes, narrowly edging out 3,291 fatalities in October.
But the deadliest driving time of the week was spot on for both studies, with Saturday night/Sunday morning (midnight to 3 a.m.) racking up the greatest number of fatalities.
The single deadliest day of the year?
The Fourth of July.
"Statistics like these are interesting, but what people often lose sight of is that these deaths happen every day of the year, about 113 persons on average," said Russ Rader, spokesman for the Arlington, Va.-based institute.
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