Traffic in Modesto is frequently heavy, and there are a number of roads and intersections where accidents happen fairly regularly. If you’re someone who regularly commutes or drives in Modesto, it’s important to understand the extent to which you’re at risk.
While safe driving practices go a long way to ensuring your safety on the roads, there’s no way to account for other reckless drivers fully. Whether it be driving under the influence, distracted driving due to mobile phones, or simply drivers who don’t follow the rules of the road, you can still be at risk even if you’re doing everything right. Here’s an overview of some of the riskier roads in Modesto, along with an explanation of the level of danger due to auto accidents.
Modesto Offers Significant Risk of Traffic Accidents
The OTS (California’s Office of Traffic Safety) creates a series of rankings for California’s major cities and towns for various measures of risk. Unfortunately, Modesto ends up near the top of several of these measures.
Overall, The OTS has ranked Modesto as the third most hazardous city in California when it comes to auto accidents. Keep in mind that this ranking is adjusted for population size. So, on a per-person basis, Modesto is the third most dangerous city.
The picture is also grim when it comes to accidents that lead to injuries or death. Out of 59 ranked cities, Modesto is second highest in crashes involving alcohol, fourth in crashes involving pedestrians, and first in crashes involving pedestrian children.
During the nighttime hours, defined as from 9:00 PM to 2:59 AM, Modesto ranks second highest in the state for crashes involving injury or death. It might be good to keep in mind that driving during the night in Modesto is particularly dangerous.
In 2023, the city of Modesto saw a total of nearly 1,300 car accidents resulting in 20 deaths.
Some of Modesto’s Most Hazardous Intersections and Roads
The University of Berkley has created a Transportation Injury Mapping System that allows us to look at all auto accidents involving injury or death by their exact geographic location. This lets us examine what parts of Modesto are most dangerous for drivers and pedestrians.
The three most dangerous intersections in Modesto are:
- Standiford Avenue & Sisk Road, where 2020 saw 11 accidents leading to seven injuries
- Yosemite Boulevard & La Loma Avenue, where there were 10 accidents leading to nine injuries and two fatalities
- McHenry Avenue & East Briggsmore Avenue, where there were 10 accidents leading to seven injuries
Each of these intersections sees heavy traffic during stretches of the day and night, and you should take particular care when navigating through them.
Another area of note is Modesto’s stretch of Highway 99. Highway 99 is one of the most convenient ways to traverse the Central Valley, but driving on it brings an elevated risk factor. Highway 99 is one of the most accident-heavy highways in California.
Highway 99 skirts the western edge of Modesto and is frequently packed with a mix of semi-trucks, pickups, SUVs and cars, all traveling at high speeds. Distracted and impaired driving is commonplace, and as a result, this stretch of Highway 99 is one of the riskiest in the state.
In 2022, Modesto’s stretch of Highway 99 saw 268 accidents producing an injury or fatality, leading to 366 injuries and 10 fatalities. That means more than one person per day on average is being injured due to an auto accident on this part of Highway 99. If you’re going to be traveling this highway, make sure to exercise extra care.
It can be difficult to ensure the safety of you and your passengers in a crowded driving environment like Modesto. But the first step toward being safe is understanding the situation and the areas of elevated risk. By having a clear picture of the dangers of Modesto driving, you have the opportunity to take extra steps to safeguard yourself on the road.