Car Accident Statistics

Wisconsin Medical Journal: Risk of fatal alcohol-related car accidents are greater in rural areas

(October 8, 2009) - Several recent studies have shown that some of the nation's highest rates of alcohol consumption and binge drinking are found in Wisconsin. According to a new study published in the Wisconsin Medical Journal (Vol. 108, No. 7), Wisconsin residents - especially those in rural areas - are also at higher risk of being involved in a car crash that is due to alcohol. A researcher at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health compared statistics about motor vehicle accident (MVA) fatalities that were related to alcohol and those in which alcohol was not a factor. In the process, he also analyzed county-by-county MVA trends and the relationship between alcohol-related MVAs and the number of liquor licenses per capita. The study's author found that rates of both types of MVAs - those associated with alcohol and those that were not - were significantly higher in rural counties than in urban ones. Rural counties had nearly 4.5 times more liquor licenses per capita than urban counties, suggesting that though there are fewer people on the roads in rural areas, there are more places to get a drink.

fatal car accidents * rates of alcohol consumption * compared statistics * MVA * rural counties * license * drink *