North Dakota Fatal Bus Accident Statistics
North Dakota has the highest rate of fatalities per million miles driven by buses in the United States at 48.88. This information comes from a report prepared by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA). The national average rate is just 11.19. The rate has more than doubled since 2010 when it was 20.82. While population has increased, the number of fatal crashes has increased over twice what it was.
The number of fatalities in North Dakota in 2015 was 47, which was down from the last three years. The number of fatal crashes was also down at 37 as compared to 41 in 2014 and 54 in 2013. A total of 42 large vehicles were involved. Nine of these crashes involved only the one vehicle, and the rest involved two or more. Studies show that most accidents involving large vehicles happen with one other vehicle.
The number of buses on the road have increased since 1975 from just over 460,000 to more than 870,000 in 2014. At the same time, the ratio of fatalities per million miles driven has dropped dramatically from 5.75 to 1.77 during the same time frame. The majority of these accidents occur during daylight hours on weekdays in clear weather.
Most counties in North Dakota did not have a fatal accident involving large vehicles in 2015. Only 14 counties reported any deaths and 12 of those had five or fewer for the year. Only two counties reported a higher number than that. Both counties are on the western side of the state. Williams County reported 11 deaths, which was an increase from eight for the prior year. McKenzie County also had 11 for 2015, but the difference with this county was that the total for the previous year had been 18, which means the area saw a significant decline.