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Counties with the most motor vehicle accident fatalities in Tennessee
Media outlets were quick during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and the consequent lockdowns that defined the summer and fall of 2020 to note just how little traffic there was as a result. Simple logic would suggest that less traffic equals a lower likelihood of accidents and thus fewer injuries and fatalities. Sadly, this was not the case.
Nationwide, traffic fatalities rose 7.2% in 2020 to nearly 39,000. That number was the highest recorded since 2007. Qualifying this disturbing fact is a sticky wicket—common denominators behind traffic deaths such as impaired driving, failure to use a seat belt, and excessive speed were certainly contributing factors, but they alone do not account for a rise in deaths commensurate with a 430-million-mile drop in the number of miles people traveled across the course of the year. What can be qualified, however, is where fatal crashes took place.
Citing data from the Fatality Analysis Reporting System, compiled by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Stacker identified the counties in Tennessee that had the most fatalities from motor vehicle crashes in 2020. The number of accident fatalities are ranked by the number of deaths per 100,000 people, with the raw number functioning as a tiebreaker. The analysis only looked at counties with at least five deaths during 2020. Additional data is included on pedestrian, bicyclist, and drunk-driving-related deaths. In counties where at least five fatalities happened on the same street or interstate, the road with the most deaths is also included.
Brian Stansberry // Wikimedia Commons
#50. Putnam County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 13.9 per 100K people (#1,122 nationally, 11 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 1 death involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
Brian Stansberry // Wikimedia Commons
#49. Sullivan County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 13.9 per 100K people (#1,118 nationally, 22 deaths)
- 2 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 1 death involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
Walker Kinsler // Wikimedia Commons
#48. Hawkins County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 14.1 per 100K people (#1,111 nationally, 8 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 1 death involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
Ichabod // Wikimedia Commons
#47. Lincoln County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 14.3 per 100K people (#1,098 nationally, 5 deaths)
- 1 pedestrian death
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 2 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
Brian Stansberry // Wikimedia Commons
#46. Anderson County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 15.6 per 100K people (#1,001 nationally, 12 deaths)
- 2 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 1 death involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
Skye Marthaler // Wikimedia Commons
#45. Lawrence County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 15.9 per 100K people (#988 nationally, 7 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 2 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
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#44. Davidson County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 16.1 per 100K people (#966 nationally, 114 deaths)
- 39 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 31 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: I-24 (10 fatalities)
Brian Stansberry // Wikimedia Commons
#43. Franklin County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 16.5 per 100K people (#942 nationally, 7 deaths)
- 3 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 2 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
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#42. Jefferson County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 16.6 per 100K people (#935 nationally, 9 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 3 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
Scott Basford // Wikimedia Commons
#41. Loudon County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 16.6 per 100K people (#934 nationally, 9 deaths)
- 2 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 0 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
Brian Stansberry // Wikimedia Commons
#40. Roane County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 16.9 per 100K people (#918 nationally, 9 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 2 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: I-40 (5 fatalities)
Ichabod // Wikimedia Commons
#39. Marshall County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 17.7 per 100K people (#880 nationally, 6 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 0 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
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#38. Madison County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 19.3 per 100K people (#792 nationally, 19 deaths)
- 3 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 3 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
Thomas R Machnitzki (thomasmachnitzki.com) // Wikimedia Commons
#37. Obion County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 19.5 per 100K people (#781 nationally, 6 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 3 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
Brian Stansberry // Wikimedia Commons
#36. Cheatham County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 19.6 per 100K people (#774 nationally, 8 deaths)
- 1 pedestrian death
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 1 death involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
Brian Stansberry // Wikimedia Commons
#35. Warren County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 19.6 per 100K people (#773 nationally, 8 deaths)
- 2 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 2 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
Thomas R Machnitzki (thomasmachnitzki.com) // Wikimedia Commons
#34. Lauderdale County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 19.7 per 100K people (#766 nationally, 5 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 3 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
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#33. Sevier County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 20.4 per 100K people (#736 nationally, 20 deaths)
- 2 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 7 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
Cj4258 // Wikimedia Commons
#32. Henry County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 21.7 per 100K people (#691 nationally, 7 deaths)
- 1 pedestrian death
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 1 death involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
Nyttend // Wikimedia Commons
#31. Henderson County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 25.2 per 100K people (#572 nationally, 7 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 3 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
AppalachianCentrist // Wikimedia Commons
#30. Greene County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 25.7 per 100K people (#553 nationally, 18 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 4 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
Brian Stansberry // Wikimedia Commons
#29. Gibson County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 25.9 per 100K people (#547 nationally, 13 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 5 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
Brian Stansberry // Wikimedia Commons
#28. Dickson County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 25.9 per 100K people (#546 nationally, 14 deaths)
- 2 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 4 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
Ballinindasierra // Wikimedia Commons
#27. Hardin County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 26.2 per 100K people (#536 nationally, 7 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 0 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
Brian Stansberry // Wikimedia Commons
#26. Robertson County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 26.3 per 100K people (#529 nationally, 19 deaths)
- 1 pedestrian death
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 5 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: I-24 (5 fatalities)
Thomas R Machnitzki (thomas@machnitzki.com) // Wikimedia Commons
#25. Fayette County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 26.5 per 100K people (#522 nationally, 11 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 1 death involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
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#24. Shelby County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 26.5 per 100K people (#521 nationally, 246 deaths)
- 71 pedestrian deaths
- 5 bicyclist deaths
- 49 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: WINCHESTER RD (14 fatalities)
Skye Marthaler // Wikimedia Commons
#23. McNairy County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 27.0 per 100K people (#504 nationally, 7 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 0 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
Ichabod // Wikimedia Commons
#22. Macon County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 28.1 per 100K people (#475 nationally, 7 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 1 death involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
Brian Stansberry // Wikimedia Commons
#21. McMinn County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 28.3 per 100K people (#462 nationally, 15 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 5 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
Brian Stansberry // Wikimedia Commons
#20. Polk County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 28.6 per 100K people (#450 nationally, 5 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 3 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
Brian Stansberry // Wikimedia Commons
#19. DeKalb County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 30.2 per 100K people (#410 nationally, 6 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 1 death involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
Brian Stansberry // Wikimedia Commons
#18. Weakley County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 30.4 per 100K people (#405 nationally, 10 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 1 death involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
Brian Stansberry // Wikimedia Commons
#17. Carroll County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 31.7 per 100K people (#383 nationally, 9 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 2 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
Brian Stansberry // Wikimedia Commons
#16. Sequatchie County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 31.8 per 100K people (#380 nationally, 5 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 0 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
Brian Stansberry // Wikimedia Commons
#15. Cumberland County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 33.0 per 100K people (#350 nationally, 20 deaths)
- 2 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 4 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: I-40 (7 fatalities)
Ichabod // Wikimedia Commons
#14. Giles County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 33.1 per 100K people (#349 nationally, 10 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 3 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
Dwight Burdette // Wikimedia Commons
#13. Cocke County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 33.4 per 100K people (#345 nationally, 12 deaths)
- 2 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 4 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
Brian Stansberry // Wikimedia Commons
#12. Bledsoe County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 33.6 per 100K people (#343 nationally, 5 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 5 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
RealElectrical // Wikimedia Commons
#11. Hardeman County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 35.1 per 100K people (#312 nationally, 9 deaths)
- 1 pedestrian death
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 2 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
GamblinMonkey // Wikimedia Commons
#10. Dyer County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 35.2 per 100K people (#305 nationally, 13 deaths)
- 2 pedestrian deaths
- 1 bicyclist death
- 1 death involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
Christina Blust // Wikimedia Commons
#9. Humphreys County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 36.9 per 100K people (#269 nationally, 7 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 3 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
Brian Stansberry // Wikimedia Commons
#8. Marion County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 41.8 per 100K people (#222 nationally, 12 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 2 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: I-24 (5 fatalities)
Brian Stansberry // Wikimedia Commons
#7. Decatur County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 43.6 per 100K people (#208 nationally, 5 deaths)
- 1 pedestrian death
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 1 death involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
Brian Stansberry // Wikimedia Commons
#6. Monroe County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 45.6 per 100K people (#180 nationally, 21 deaths)
- 2 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 6 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
Brian Stansberry // Wikimedia Commons
#5. Union County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 45.9 per 100K people (#177 nationally, 9 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 4 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: SR-33 MAYNARDVILLE HWY (6 fatalities)
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#4. Haywood County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 50.2 per 100K people (#139 nationally, 9 deaths)
- 1 pedestrian death
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 2 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: I-40 (5 fatalities)
Ichabod // Wikimedia Commons
#3. Chester County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 52.1 per 100K people (#130 nationally, 9 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 6 deaths involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
AppalachianCentrist // Wikimedia Commons
#2. Grainger County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 55.6 per 100K people (#108 nationally, 13 deaths)
- 0 pedestrian deaths
- 1 bicyclist death
- 1 death involving drunk drivers
- No roads with at least five fatalities
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#1. Hickman County, Tennessee
- Motor vehicle crash fatalities: 56.3 per 100K people (#102 nationally, 14 deaths)
- 1 pedestrian death
- 0 bicyclist deaths
- 3 deaths involving drunk drivers
- Road with most fatalities: I-40 (6 fatalities)