Crash Reports Online:
Beaumont, TX

The city of Beaumont, with a population of just over 119,000 and situated no more than a stone's throw from the Louisiana border, certainly has more than its fair share of accidents every year. Examining data from Beaumont's last five years reveals accident volumes that are quite high for a city of its size. In fact, from 2014 to 2018 there hasn't been a year gone by that there weren't at least 4,000 annual accidents.

This isn't to say that accident rates haven't fluctuated over the last five years in Beaumont, though. While 2014 represents a low point in volumes with just 4,033 recorded collisions, rates rose moderately in 2015 to 4,212 yearly accidents and then much more precipitously in 2015. There were 4,848 annual accidents occur that year, representing a high point, before exhibiting a slow but sure decline over 2017  and 2018 (4,532 and 4,492 yearly accidents respectively).

These high figures aren't necessarily as much a cause for concern as you may think, though. Beaumont's overall figures are likely higher because it's situated right on the I-10 corridor, one of the busiest interstate highways in the United States, as it links a number of major metropolitan areas stretching from Los Angeles to Jacksonville, Florida. Secondly, the sudden jump and gradual dropoff in accident rates mirrors a national trend that saw the US experience a peak in accident volume in 2016.

Meanwhile, traffic accident-related fatalities in Beaumont are also largely in line with national crash death figures for the same period of time. Federal data shows that fatalities also peaked in 2016 before beginning a drop-off in 2017 and beyond, just as overall accident volume had done from 2014 through 2018. Beaumont's fatal accident numbers show strong indications of being influenced by this national trend, as the city's fatalities remained stable at 8 per year through 2014 and 2015 before rising to 18 -- more than double -- in 2016. The following year, annual fatalities began to decline in Beaumont, dropping to 16. It's true that 2018 was a slightly more deadly year for Beaumont drivers with 17 deaths, but this is still fewer fatalities than the city experienced in 2016. It may not match national trends perfectly, but it's still in the ballpark.

But what's behind the sudden rise and slow fall in both accident volume and fatality counts around the United States that has clearly influenced Beaumont's traffic figures? In an ironic twist, safety on US roadways seems to have gotten worse because everything else had gotten better. Specifically, the economy's strengthening in 2015, which led to both a lower unemployment rate and more affordable gasoline prices, made it less expensive for people across the country to drive a car. With so many more Americans spending time on the nation's roads, accident figures rose as well. That included fatal accidents.

Viewed through this lens it's clear that Beaumont being located directly on I-10 certainly may have a role to play in accident volumes, it isn't necessarily an unsafe city for drivers. It's simply exhibiting the same trends as other Texan cities -- and the rest of the US as well.

Meanwhile, traffic accident-related fatalities in Beaumont are also largely in line with national crash death figures for the same period of time. Federal data shows that fatalities also peaked in 2016 before beginning a drop-off in 2017 and beyond, just as overall accident volume had done from 2014 through 2018. Beaumont's fatal accident numbers show strong indications of being influenced by this national trend, as the city's fatalities remained stable at 8 per year through 2014 and 2015 before rising to 18 -- more than double -- in 2016. The following year, annual fatalities began to decline in Beaumont, dropping to 16. It's true that 2018 was a slightly more deadly year for Beaumont drivers with 17 deaths, but this is still fewer fatalities than the city experienced in 2016. It may not match national trends perfectly, but it's still in the ballpark.

But what's behind the sudden rise and slow fall in both accident volume and fatality counts around the United States that has clearly influenced Beaumont's traffic figures? In an ironic twist, safety on US roadways seems to have gotten worse because everything else had gotten better. Specifically, the economy's strengthening in 2015, which led to both a lower unemployment rate and more affordable gasoline prices, made it less expensive for people across the country to drive a car. With so many more Americans spending time on the nation's roads, accident figures rose as well. That included fatal accidents.

Viewed through this lens it's clear that Beaumont being located directly on I-10 certainly may have a role to play in accident volumes, it isn't necessarily an unsafe city for drivers. It's simply exhibiting the same trends as other Texan cities -- and the rest of the US as well.