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15 Dangerous Cities for Driving

By: Colleen Kane, CNBC Writer | 29 Jul 2011 | 04:57 PM ET
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Cities With High Driving Fatality Rates
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There are many ways one could gauge the danger of driving in a particular city, but this list uses the cities with the greatest number of vehicular deaths as a barometer of the danger level. U.S. cities with a population of 150,000 or more were up for consideration, using the most recent motor vehicle crash data available from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Fatality Analysis Reporting System and General Estimates System.One particular region of the country, the South, is overrepresented, and within that region one state in particular sticks out like a panhandle: A full one-third of the cities in this list are in Florida. Why does Florida rank so badly? Some blame the high proportion of New York City expats—some driving for the first time in their lives—foreigners, tourists driving in unfamiliar territory, and senior citizens, not to mention spring breakers, who may have compromised vision or reflexes.Los Angeles didn’t make the most dangerous list, but had had the most total fatalities overall, at 293. The city that’s the most dangerous for pedestrians, according to the data, is Pittsburgh, accounting for more than 50 percent of total fatalities.On the safer end of the spectrum, here are the 10 cities with the least fatalities per 100,000 population: Arlington CDP (census designated place), Va. (0.48)Vancouver, Wash. (1.23)Moreno Valley, Calif. (1.57)Rochester, N.Y. (1.93)Spokane, Wash. (1.98)Lincoln, Neb. (1.99)Aurora, Ill. (2.33)St. Paul, Minn. (2.50)Omaha, Neb. (2.51)Jersey City, N.J. (2.90)Click ahead to see the 15 cities that ranked the worst for fatalities per 100,000 population.By Colleen KanePosted 29 July 2011

15. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Nicolas T.
Population: 551,789Total fatality rate per 100,000 population: 13.41Total fatalities: 74Percentage of fatalities that were pedestrians: 13.5

14. Birmingham, Alabama
Jumper | Photodisc | Getty Images
Population: 228,798Total fatality rate per 100,000 population: 13.55Total fatalities: 31Percentage of fatalities that were pedestrians: 15.2

13. Tulsa, Oklahoma
Panoramic Images | Getty Images
Population: 385,635Total fatality rate per 100,000 population: 14.00Total fatalities: 54Percentage of fatalities that were pedestrians: 18.5

12. St. Petersburg, Florida
milan.boers
Population: 245,314Total fatality rate per 100,000 population: 14.27Total fatalities: 35Percentage of fatalities that were pedestrians: 28.6

11. Jacksonville, Florida
Ken Lund
Population: 807,815Total fatality rate per 100,000 population: 14.36Total fatalities: 116Percentage of fatalities that were pedestrians: 13.8

10. Lubbock, Texas
Justin Cozart
Population: 220,483Total fatality rate per 100,000 population: 14.97Total fatalities: 33Percentage of fatalities that were pedestrians: 15.2

9. Memphis, Tennessee
Ben W
Population: 669,651Total fatality rate per 100,000 population: 15.08Total fatalities: 101Percentage of fatalities that were pedestrians: 11.9

8. Jackson, Mississippi
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Population: 173,861Total fatality rate per 100,000 population: 15.53Total fatalities: 27Percentage of fatalities that were pedestrians: 18.5

7. Chattanooga, Tennessee
Bryce Edwards
Population: 170,880Total fatality rate per 100,000 population: 16.39Total fatalities: 28Percentage of fatalities that were pedestrians: 17.9

6. Salt Lake City, Utah
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Population: 181,698Total fatality rate per 100,000 population: 16.51Total fatalities: 30Percentage of fatalities that were pedestrians: 26.7

5. San Bernardino, California
Christa Connelly
Population: 198,580Total fatality rate per 100,000 population: 17.12Total fatalities: 34Percentage of fatalities that were pedestrians: 15.8

4. Little Rock, Arkansas
Population: 189,515Total fatality rate per 100,000 population: 17.94Total fatalities: 34Percentage of fatalities that were pedestrians: 26.5

3. Augusta-Richmond Co., Georgia
Stacie Wells
Population: 194,149Total fatality rate per 100,000 population: 19.57Total fatalities: 38Percentage of fatalities that were pedestrians: 15.8

2. Orlando, Florida
Ben Ostrowsky
Population: 230,519Total fatality rate per 100,000 population: 19.95Total fatalities: 46Percentage of fatalities that were pedestrians: 10.9

1. Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Image Source | Getty Images
Population: 183,126Total fatality rate per 100,000 population: 22.39Total fatalities: 41Percentage of fatalities that were pedestrians: 24.4

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