Arizona's best, worst cities for driver safety
Drivers in Arizona face a lower risk of getting into an accident compared to motorists around the nation, and residents of the East Valley are in particularly good shape. Those are some of the findings from a new Allstate study focused around the likelihood of collisions for drivers in the nation's 200 largest metro areas. For the second straight year, drivers in Fort Collins, Colo., enjoyed the best safety ranking. Those in Brownsville, Texas, finished second, followed by Boise, Idaho; Kansas City, Kan.; and Huntsville, Ala. But Arizona cities as a group fared well, too.
- Gilbert rank: 20 Among the nine Arizona cities tracked for auto-collision frequency, Gilbert fared best, ranking No. 20 in the nation. Gilbert drivers are 12.5 percent less likely than Americans to get into an accident, and Gilbert motorists go about 11.4 years on average between crashes. Gilbert has improved its ranking over time. It was 29th in 2013 and 41st in 2005, when Allstate conducted its first study.
- Mesa rank: 22 Mesa motorists are only a step behind those in Gilbert. Mesa drivers are 11 percent less likely than Americans to get into an accident, and they go 11.2 years on average between crashes. Mesa, Arizona's third most-populous city, had a better ranking in Allstate's 2013 study, when it was 11th in the nation. But Mesa was considerably lower back in 2005, in 59th place.
- Chandler rank: 31 A trend is emerging: The East Valley appears to be the safest metro area to drive in Arizona. Chandler motorists are 8.4-percent less likely to get into a crash compared to the national average, going about 10.9 years between accidents, on average. Chandler moved up four spots from the 2013 study, when the city was 35th. It also has improved from 45th place in 2005.
- Tempe rank: 33 Make it a clean sweep for the East Valley, with Tempe two spots behind Chandler. Tempe motorists go 10.9 years between accidents on average and are 8.2 percent less likely to get into a crash compared to the national norm. Tempe dropped from a ranking of 22nd in 2013 but has improved sharply since the 2005 study, when it placed 89th nationally.
- Tucson rank: 43 Tucson was the only Arizona city outside the Valley to be evaluated by Allstate. Tucson dropped sharply from 2013, when it ranked 20th, but it's up moderately from its 2005 ranking in 54th place. Drivers in Southern Arizona's biggest metro area go 10.4 years between accidents on average and are 4.1 percent less likely to get into a crash than Americans generally.
- Scottsdale rank: 45 Scottsdale is remarkably unexceptional in Allstate's study. Scottsdale's ranking changed by just one slot compared to 2013, when the city was 44th. Also, Scottsdale's position has barely budged since 2005, when it ranked 39th, and Scottsdale is near the middle among the nine Arizona cities studied. Scottsdale drivers go 10.3 years between accidents. They're 2.6 percent less likely to get into one.
- Peoria rank: 47 Motorists in Peoria are near the U.S. average for accident frequency. They're 1.9 percent less likely to be involved in a crash and go about 10.2 years on average between incidents. Peoria's ranking improved from a position of 54th last year, but the city has dropped a bit compared to the No. 43 ranking it achieved in Allstate's first study in 2005.
- Glendale rank: 65 Is the West Valley a fairly risky place to drive in Arizona? It's a possibility given Glendale's ranking, second-worst among Arizona cities. Residents here are 3.2 percent more likely than Americans to be involved in a collision, and they go 9.7 years between accidents. Glendale's ranking dropped from last year, when it was 49th nationally. It's also down from 56th place in Allstate's debut study in 2005.
- Phoenix rank: 79 Phoenix has the worst ranking by Arizona standards, yet it's the safest place for drivers among cities with 1 million-plus people. Phoenix residents are 5.7 percent more likely than Americans overall to get into a crash and go 9.5 years on average between collisions, according to Allstate. But that's not bad by big-city standards. Phoenix's placement has dropped from 71st in 2013 and 63rd in 2005.
- The big picture. Allstate's study shows Arizona to be a fairly safe place to drive, with all nine cities among the 80 lowest nationally for crash frequency. Phoenix's top position among cities of 1 million or more residents is noteworthy. Worcester, Mass., had the worst ranking, but several big cities finished near the bottom, including Boston, Washington, Baltimore, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Los Angeles.