Forbes Names Detroit Drivers Among Worst In The Country

We all know driving in Michigan can be an absolute nightmare sometimes. Whether it be the constant construction, the horrible weather, or the never-ending supply of potholes, driving here can keep you on your toes.

But what if it isn't the roads that are to blame, but rather the drivers themselves? According to a recent Forbes study, it could be our drivers that are the biggest problem in Michigan.

Forbes Advisor Study

Forbes recently conducted a study to find out which cities had the worst drivers, comparing the 50 largest cities in the US. The study identified where drivers committed the most dangerous driving behaviors, with the following five metrics being used to determine which city's drivers were the worst per 100,000 residents:

• # of fatal car accidents (24% of score)
• # of fatal car accidents involving a drunk driver (BAC levels of 0.08+)
• # of fatal car accidents involving distracted drivers (19% of score)
• # of fatal car accidents involving speeding (19% of score)
• # of people killed in fatal crashes (19% of score)

Information for this study comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Fatality and Injury Reporting System Tool (2017-2021), and the U.S. Census Bureau (2022).

Detroit Ranks Third

With how the score was determined out of the way, just how bad of drivers are people from Detroit? Apparently, pretty terrible. Out of all 50 cities on the list, Detroit ranked 3rd worst with a score of 94.97 out of 100. Our city has a high number of fatal car crash victims and ranked second highest in:

• Total # of fatal car accidents (19.76/100,000 city residents)
• # of fatal car accidents involving a drunk driver (6.54/100,000 city residents)
• # of fatal car accidents involving speeding (6.8/100,000 city residents)
• # of people killed in fatal crashes. (21.47/100,000 city residents)

Yikes.

Maybe it's time to start making adults take driving tests to make sure we all know how to drive.