Mississippi - The Most Dangerous State for Driving (to live, to move)

[Southern man]

Originally Posted by samanthastar22

I'm not sure how Mississippi got the worst

The list makers have a lot of practice.

[DiogenesofJackson]

It seems counter intuitive. I recently drove through Miss. going from Atlanta to Dallas and then again from Memphis to NOLa. These aren't my first trips to Miss. after having lived there for some time and did lots of driving in the state.

Some of what everyone has stated thus far is true. People ignore rules of the road here, especially turn signals. I've found, however, that there are many slow drivers rather than fast ones, which belies the near worship-level of NASCAR among Mississippians. You'd think NASCAR fanatics would drive faster.

Also true is that there are buttloads of cops on the road in Miss. On my recent travels I noticed that on interstates in GA, AL, TX, TN, and AR that I saw few working highway patrol officers. In Mississippi, on the other hand, I spotted three highway patrol officers hard at work about every 50 miles. For there to be so many working patrolmen and women in the state (compared to nearby states) suggests that Mississippi needs them to ticket drivers and work wrecks.

One other truism about driving in Mississippi when compared to other nearby states, the traffic levels on the interstates and four-lane U.S. routes is decidely lower. I sped through the state at about 75 mph going down I-55 from Memphis to NOLa. and hardly passed a car or truck because I didn't have to. There was hardly anyone on the road for a weekday between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m. Whereas travelling I-30 and I-40 in Arkansas had me slowing down and speeding up in trying to negotiate near bumper-to-bumper traffic, all the way from Little Rock to Memphis and Texarkana to Little Rock. Conclusion: there are fewer motorists in Mississippi, which suggests that the danger level should be lower.

[jsherman9901]

I would imagine that a lot of the deaths are due to old cars without airbags; being a poor state, many people drive vehicles from the 80s and early 90s before airbags became standard equipment. I honestly don't see that much reckless driving here, and I go all over the state. Two things that I DO see that bug the hell out of me are (1) people that pull out in front of you when you are dangerously close to them, then drive 15 mph below the posted speed limit, and (2) people that turn on their turn signal because the driver in front of them did, even though they are not turning themselves. Grrrrrrrrr!!!!

[Huckleberry3911948]

wow u r right that is hard to believe i do alota driving there and here. i feel much safer there. tell me do they stop and back on to catch the exit on the freeway in MS? they do here.

[DiogenesofJackson]

Originally Posted by jsherman9901

I would imagine that a lot of the deaths are due to old cars without airbags; being a poor state, many people drive vehicles from the 80s and early 90s before airbags became standard equipment. I honestly don't see that much reckless driving here, and I go all over the state. Two things that I DO see that bug the hell out of me are (1) people that pull out in front of you when you are dangerously close to them, then drive 15 mph below the posted speed limit, and (2) people that turn on their turn signal because the driver in front of them did, even though they are not turning themselves. Grrrrrrrrr!!!!

People do pull right out in front of you in Miss. and it's very annoying. It seems like it goes on more in Miss. than it does in other states where I've driven.

[Delta Planter]

Without reading all the bashing of the Great State of Mississippi, a simple answer: If you are worried about driving in any given place, simply, don't. Don't go there, don't drive there, take the bus, take a taxi, go somewhere else. Seems like all anyone can do anymore is bash some place based on what the MSM media talks about, including Fox News. Sheez.

[wawa1992]

Good thing I have a 2008 Honda Accord... but might want to stay out of Mississippi, because I'm going to be surrounded by airbags if I spend too much time there!

[GrandviewGloria]

Originally Posted by jsherman9901

I would imagine that a lot of the deaths are due to old cars without airbags; being a poor state, many people drive vehicles from the 80s and early 90s before airbags became standard equipment.

Well, actually, that's why they fill the back windows with pillows, and the back seats with stuffed animals. When everything starts flying through the air, following impact, the pillows and foam-filled Tiggers & Teddybears get between the fourteen grandbabies jumping up and down in the in the back seat and most of the sharp projectiles.

Balloons help too, and that's why impromptu memorials to accident victims include balloons and stuffed animals. They serve as Safe Driving Tips, as if to say, "If only they'd had more stuffed animals, balloons and pillows in the car, they'd still be with us..."

[Chris Balducci]

A lot of Mississippians needlessly die in auto accidents because they don't wear seat belts!

[An Einnseanair]

Originally Posted by jsherman9901

I would imagine that a lot of the deaths are due to old cars without airbags; being a poor state, many people drive vehicles from the 80s and early 90s before airbags became standard equipment. I honestly don't see that much reckless driving here, and I go all over the state. Two things that I DO see that bug the hell out of me are (1) people that pull out in front of you when you are dangerously close to them, then drive 15 mph below the posted speed limit, and (2) people that turn on their turn signal because the driver in front of them did, even though they are not turning themselves. Grrrrrrrrr!!!!

I think it's a mix of reasons, older vehicles being one of them. THIS LINK gives another reason. I don't think it's a coincidence that three of the top five states with the most alcohol-impaired fatalities are on the same list as the most auto-fatalities overall, nor is it a coincidence that all three states are mostly rural.

Add in low seat-belt usage (the law isn't enforced in rural areas, and if caught the ticket is a whopping $25), minimal booster seats requirements for children (only required until age 7, and even then this isn't really enforced in rural areas *), the massive number of unlicensed drivers (**), and the number of un-tagged, un-insured, un-inspected, and falling apart vehicles on rural roads. Mix together with Mississippi's relatively low population density and you get Mississippi as the #1 auto-fatality state as a percentage of total population.

(*) My cousin lives in an urban area with two young sons (both well under 7). One time at a family gathering in rural Mississippi I overheard one of them saying how awesome it was that they didn't have to sit in their car seat or buckle up because they were "in the country."
(**) Exactly one week after we purchased our first new car, my wife was rear-ended by an unlicensed and uninsured driver. The other driver basically disappeared afterwards. My brother was put in a hospital for several weeks and on disability for almost 2 years after he was hit by an unlicensed, uninsured, illegal immigrant driving a vehicle with no tag or inspection sticker. He has an artificial hip at the age of 33.

Turn Signals: I was actually taught that you were supposed to put your turn signal on if the car in front of you is turning. The reason was that the person behind you might not see the turn signal of the car in front of you and might try to pass when it's not safe. It wasn't until I was much older that I found out that this was a bad idea; the solution is to move your car slightly over in the direction opposite the turn so anyone behind you can see the signaling vehicle.