Today is the Deadliest Day of the Year on the Roads

If someone was to ask you which day of the year has the most fatal accidents you may come up with the few seemingly obvious answers. The usual answers would be New Years Day, July 4th, day light savings time, or the fall equinox. However, none of these would be the right answer. Statistically, August 2nd has more fatal accidents than any other day of the year.

According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, from 2012-2016 there were 505 fatal car accidents on August 2nd. The average is 101 fatal accidents per year. July 4th has the second most deadly accidents of the year with an average of 99 accidents per year. From 2012-2016 there were 495 deadly accidents. October 25th has had 488 deadly accidents from 2012-2016 with an average of 98 per year, May 3rd has had 487 with an average of 97, and November 1st has had the same as May 3rd.

Why does August 2nd have the most fatal accidents? According to research scientist Becca West at IIHS, "In the summer, the weather is nice, sunny, and people just are a little more reckless, they’re a little less careful." August has the most fatal accidents compared to other months. In bad weather, people are a bit more cautious while driving.

Many families go on vacation during the first week of August which of course means that there are more cars on the road. Associate vice president from product development at Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company, Teresa Scharn, stated that there are three major factors in determining whether someone is at a higher risk of a car accident. Sharn told Bloomerg.com, "Some of those are fast acceleration, hard brakes, idle time..."

Source: Bloomberg.com