Do your Thanksgiving travel plans include driving? With the focus on family, friends, food, and football, thoughts of road safety are often put on the backburner.
You might be shocked to learn that Thanksgiving is the second most dangerous driving holiday, just behind Labor Day weekend.
Why is Thanksgiving such a scary time to be on the road? And what can we do to make the roadways safer as we approach the start of the holiday season? Let’s break it down and get some answers!
3 Reasons Thanksgiving is a Dangerous Time to Drive
Over 500 Americans die in vehicle crashes every Thanksgiving holiday (between the Wednesday night before and the following Monday morning). This is higher than the number of fatalities seen during Christmas, Memorial Day weekend, and even the 4th of July.
What makes Thanksgiving so much more deadly than other holidays?
1. Amount of Traffic
Every year, nearly 50 million Americans load up their vehicles and take to the roads on their way to celebrate Thanksgiving. The Wednesday before Thanksgiving, drive times increase by as much as 80% in some metros as vehicles crowd the streets.
Naturally, with more traffic on the road, there is a greater risk of car crashes.
2. Drinking and Drugs
Drinking during the Thanksgiving holiday has become a cultural phenomenon. You’ll see #blackoutwednesday, #blackwednesday, and #drinksgiving trending on socials, promoting binge drinking the week of Thanksgiving.
This trend is popular with students on break from college, often visiting their hometown friends for a night out before Thanksgiving with the family. But it’s also common among professionals who have a short work week. Then there are the millions of people who imbibe to take the edge off tense family gatherings.
The result?
More roadway deaths. From 2018 through 2022, 833 people died during the Thanksgiving holiday because of a drunk driver. For Thanksgiving 2022 alone, there were 183 deaths caused by drunk driving.
Then there’s #danksgiving, the trend of using marijuana during Thanksgiving. There haven’t been studies specifically focused on traffic accidents from drug-impaired drivers during Thanksgiving, but we know that drugs can slow reaction times, which can lead to more accidents. According to the Colorado Department of Transportation, 29% of drivers involved in fatal crashes in 2022 tested positive for drugs.
3. Distractions
Distracted driving is an ever-present problem on the roadways. A quick look at your phone screen, an adjustment to your navigation, or even a wandering mind can all cause you to take your eyes off the road. And it only takes a second to collide with an unexpected hazard.
During Thanksgiving, there are even more potential distractions:
Kids in the backseat need your attention on a long drive.
Your phone keeps pinging with new messages about the details of your Thanksgiving gathering.
Your thoughts are on family dynamics for the upcoming holiday events.
You’re snacking on a long road trip.
You have an extra mental load, going over your to-do list, meal plans, and grocery lists in your head.
Distracted driving directly resulted in 3,308 car accident deaths in 2022, plus 289,310 non-fatal injuries.
Thanksgiving Travel Safety Tips
The good news is that there’s a lot you can do to protect yourself, your family, and everyone else on the roads this Thanksgiving!
Time your travel. Skip the busiest travel times if possible. If you must travel on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, INRIX (a transportation data provider), recommends leaving in the morning or after 6:00 pm.
Plan alternative transportation if you’ll be drinking or doing drugs. It’s never a good idea to get black-out drunk or overdo it with drugs. But, if you’re planning to partake at all, arrange a safe ride home. Get a designated driver, order a rideshare, or stay over with your host.
Report impaired drivers. If you see someone driving erratically, call 911 to report a potentially impaired driver. It could save a life.
Minimize distractions. Set your nav and make sure everyone has everything they need before starting your trip to avoid distractions while driving. If your phone is a distraction, silence it and put it away.
Take breaks on long trips. Give yourself a chance to rest your eyes, drink some water, and eat something every few hours to avoid driving drowsy. You can also check your messages now so you don’t have to be distracted by your phone on the road.
Practice defensive driving. Defensive driving is when you recognize that other drivers make mistakes, and you account for that in your driving. For example, increasing the distance between yourself and the vehicle in front of you will give you more time to react if that other driver has to brake suddenly because they weren’t paying attention to a hazard in front of them.
Enroll in a Defensive Driving Course to Stay Safe This Holiday Season
Looking to learn more about defensive driving techniques that can help you avoid accidents and stay safe on the roadways? Enroll in an online defensive driving course today!
Updated 11/11/2024
