Where and when Wichitans are getting into traffic accidents

Wichita is creating a new bureau of traffic officers, which will help address traffic accidents, according to police. One of the strategies, according to police Chief Gordon Ramsay, will be to target areas with lots of traffic accidents.

The Eagle has analyzed 15 months’ worth of traffic data, between March 2016 and May 2017, to help drivers figure out where and when they’re getting into trouble.

Day and time

Wichitans get into more accidents going home from work than driving to work: The most accidents occurred between 11 a.m. and 6 p.m., with the peak between 5 and 6 p.m.

You want to be especially careful on your way home at the end of the week or on your way out of town. The most accident-prone time of week was Friday afternoon. Four of the top 10 hours with the most accidents during the week occurred between noon and 6 p.m. on Friday.

There are more accidents during the week than on the weekend. But as you might expect, disproportionately more late-night traffic accidents occur on Saturday than the rest of the week. But overall, there are still more daytime than nighttime accidents, even on the weekend.

Unusual kinds of accidents

The vast majority of accidents were with other moving vehicles, but about 1,000 were collisions with fixed objects like poles and fire hydrants. Another 600 or so were with parked cars.

Four of the accidents were cars hitting a train.

In 80 of the accidents, at least one of the vehicles overturned.

In 42, the vehicle hit an animal.

About the same number of accidents involved a pedestrian or a bicyclist: 128 and 121, respectively.

Where they occur

The top 10 most frequent spots for accidents were all either on Kellogg, Central or 21st Street.

This story was originally published June 28, 2017 at 11:52 AM with the headline "Where and when Wichitans are getting into traffic accidents."