Crash Statistics: Comparing San Diego City and San Diego County to Other California Places

​Accident statistics help us determine how safe a place is for motorists. As residents of San Diego, we’re no strangers to collisions on our roads, but how do we compare to similar places in California in terms of vehicle crash numbers? The California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS) has a helpful ranking system that gives us an idea of how our city and county fare in traffic safety, in comparison to other places in the state.

Let’s take a look at how the City of San Diego and San Diego County rank in accident numbers as of 2020 (latest ranking).

City of San Diego Accident Statistics Ranking

The OTS compares San Diego City against 14 other California cities with a population of over 250,000. These include Los Angeles, San Jose, San Francisco, and Sacramento. A ranking of 1/15 means the city is the worst in that category, while 15/15 means the city fares best.

• Total fatal and injurious crashes
  San Diego City rank: 11/15
  Victims killed and injured: 4,094

• Alcohol-involved crashes
  San Diego City rank: 8/15
  Victims killed and injured: 621

• Motorcycle crashes
  San Diego City rank: 7/15
  Victims killed and injured: 353

• Pedestrian accidents
  San Diego City rank: 9/15
  Victims killed and injured: 452

• Bicyclist accidents
  San Diego City rank: 7/15
  Victims killed and injured: 334

• Speed-related crashes
  San Diego City rank: 12/15
  Number of fatal and injury crashes: 530

• Nighttime crashes
  San Diego City rank: 11/15
  Number of fatal and injury crashes: 470

• Hit-and-run crashes
  San Diego City rank: 11/15
  Number of fatal and injury crashes: 461.

Of the 15 large cities compared, it appears that San Diego is among the safer places for motorists, ranking low in most of the crash categories. However, we can’t discount that thousands of people still get killed or injured in traffic crashes in the city in a year.

It’s also worth noting that San Diego ranks closer to the top in terms of motorcycle and bicycle accidents. This should be a reminder for riders to be defensive and responsible when riding, and for car drivers to practice extra caution when sharing the road with bikers and cyclists.

San Diego County Accident Statistics Ranking

For county rankings, the OTS compares all 58 California counties in every crash category. A ranking of 1/58 means the county is the worst in that category, while 58/58 means the county fares best.

• Total fatal and injurious crashes
  San Diego County rank: 28/58
  Victims killed and injured: 15,043

• Alcohol-involved crashes
  San Diego County rank: 10/58
  Victims killed and injured: 2,262

• Motorcycle crashes
  San Diego County rank: 6/58
  Victims killed and injured: 1,246

• Pedestrian accidents
  San Diego County rank: 18/58
  Victims killed and injured: 979

• Bicyclist accidents
  San Diego County rank: 25/58
  Victims killed and injured: 690

• Speed-related crashes
  San Diego County rank: 32/58
  Number of fatal and injury crashes: 2,985

• Nighttime crashes
  San Diego County rank: 27/58
  Number of fatal and injury crashes: 1,702

• Hit-and-run crashes
  San Diego County rank: 44/58
  Number of fatal and injury crashes: 1,263.

Relative to other counties in California, San Diego County is about average in terms of total fatal and injurious collisions. Unfortunately, when we look at motorcycle crashes, the county is the 6th worst in the state. It’s also among the 10 worst counties for alcohol-related traffic accidents.

In 2022, the county strengthened its Vision Zero initiative to curb DUI injuries and fatalities, and saw a reduction in overall DUI cases by the end of that year. Still, the number of intoxicated driving cases in 2022 reached 5,408, involving not just alcohol but other substances such as marijuana and prescription drugs.

Contact a San Diego County Personal Injury Attorney

If you’ve been injured in San Diego through someone else’s fault, let the Hamparyan Personal Injury Lawyers assist you. For more than 20 years now, we have helped Californians get their rightful compensation following their car accidents, motorcycle crashes, bicycle accidents, and more. Our law firm has helped produce over $100 million in settlements and verdicts favoring our clients.

Get your free consultation with Hamparyan Personal Injury Lawyers. Call us today at (619) 550-1355.