SACOG report confirms widely held belief that Sacramento area roads are increasingly deadly

Across social media platforms, casual conversations among many Elk Grove and Sacramento regional pedestrians, cyclists, and motorists have spoken about what they view as increasingly dangerous traffic conditions. A multi-faceted report released today from the Sacramento Area Council of Governments (SACOG) confirms those suspicions.

SACOG's 2024 Regional Progress Report highlighted an alarming trend in the six-county Sacramento region. SACOG, a multi-jurisdictional agency charged with long-term regional planning for Sacramento, Yolo, El Dorado, Placer, Sutter, and Yuba counties, introduced their report by saying the regional serious vehicle collision rates were higher than statewide averages.

The report said, "Across both California and the Sacramento region, the rate of traffic fatalities and serious injuries has increased since around 2010. However, the rate of serious collisions has increased quicker in the Sacramento region, which now exceeds the state average by nearly 25 percent. The year 2021 saw a noticeable increase in both travel collision fatalities and serious injuries in the Sacramento region, even when travel per capita was lower.

"Interestingly, the fatality rate started its spike in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic, when many businesses and offices were closed. The report also accounts for the decreased traffic during the 2020 shutdown and noted that with less traffic, the serious injury rate per 100 miles jumped starting in 2020 (see charts below).

It was also noted that in 2021, the fatality and serious injury rate was the highest since the start of compilation in 2006 and well above the statewide rate. In 2024, there were 352 traffic-related fatalities and 1,409 serious injuries in the six-county region. The report cites other traffic statistics, commuting patterns, changing demographics, increasing housing costs, and other economic metrics. The entire report is available here.