Traffic flows along the overpasses at the I-80 and I-15 interchange in South Salt Lake on Wednesday, April 7, 2021. Steve Griffin, Deseret News
A new study shows fatal crashes increase by 100% on Thanksgiving Day. The data comes from Jerry, an insurance shopping app, who gathered it from the National Highway Safety Administration (NHSA).
Lakshmi Iyengar, a data scientist with Jerry, said specifically the times between 2 am and 3 am and 6 pm and 7 pm on Thanksgiving Day are the deadliest.
“Clearly the early morning hours have a lot of dangerous driving habits happening and post-Thanksgiving dinner are the times to avoid.” said Iyengar. “These are the times when bars are closing or people may be tired from the meal — along with drinking some alcohol.”
The data shows Saturday is the second deadliest day during this holiday to be on the road. Iyengar said the times on Saturday are very similar to Thanksgiving Day: 1 am to 2 am and from 7 pm to 8 pm.
“The first recommendation,” Iyengar said “is never to drink and drive. Then try to leave before most everyone else is on Thanksgiving Day or wait until after 8 pm to head home.”
The information from the NHSA also shows which states have the most fatalities during this holiday weekend.
The top 5-states with the most deadly crashes per capita are Mississippi, Wyoming, Louisana, New Mexico and Alabama.