SALT LAKE CITY — If holiday travel is planned over Christmas, Utah drivers can rest easy knowing that the Beehive State is recognized as having the fourth safest roads in the nation during that period annually.
That’s the conclusion of a recent study by the Utah-based personal injury experts of the Steele Adams Hosman law firm in Salt Lake City.
Using data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the attorneys’ analysts found that Utah recorded just 4.89 traffic deaths in car crashes annually over the Christmas holiday per one million residents, making it the fourth safest state in the nation.
The Utah average is more than 50 percent lower than the national average of 10.66 fatalities in the same period over the decade from 2014 to 2023.
“As we enter the busiest period of the year, drivers need to be especially mindful of safety,” according to Justin Hosman, a partner in the Steel Adams Hosman law firm.
“Whether you’re traveling across the county or just across town,” he adds, “staying focused, driving sober and eliminating distractions can help ensure that everyone reaches their destinations safely.”
In 2024, the National Safety Council reported that more than 130 people died on U.S. roads during the Christmas holiday period, with alcohol impairment being the leading contributory cause of motor vehicles crashes.
But Utah’s slice of that grim statistic was only an average 1.6 traffic fatalities over Christmas annually in the period from 2014 to 2023.
Over that decade, nearly 69 percent of Utah holiday fatalities were drivers and another 12.5 percent of fatal mishaps involved pedestrians.
In addition to Utah, other states ranking in the top five as safest over the Christmas holiday were Rhode Island (4 fatalities from 2014 to 2023), New York (89 fatalities), Vermont (3 fatalities) and Washington (42 fatalities).
The study analyzed Christmas traffic fatalities using data from the NHTSA to rank the deadliest states for Christmas travel.
Hosman explained that analysts from the law firm compiled total fatalities occurring during Christmas period across all 50 states over a 10-year period from 2014 to 2023, then normalized these totals by each state’s 2023 population.
All fatalities were classified by casualty type — including drivers, passengers, pedestrians, bicyclists, motor vehicle occupants not in-transport and persons on personal conveyances — to conduct percentage-based analysis of casualty patterns.
The Christmas time-period was determined by the Utah Department of Transportation.
Additional information about the Steele Adams Hosman Law Firm can be found by going online to www.sahlegal.com