The Deadliest Time To Drive In Michigan

When I was a fresh driver on the road, two things took me a very long time to become comfortable doing:

• Merging from an on-ramp
• driving at night

On ramps spooked me because you had to get your speed up quickly, and sometimes people don't let you in. But driving at night was the main fear because you always hear the horror stories of deer or drunk drivers taking drivers out in the middle of the night.

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But as it turns out, while these things do happen, they pale in comparison to what time of day is really the most dangerous.

MSP Statewide Traffic Report 2024

Every year, the Michigan State Police (MSP) releases its Statewide Traffic Crash Data Report, detailing everything from total crash totals based on day of the week, month, and time, to specific vehicle crashes and the types of crashes that occurred.

READ MORE: One Of Michigan's Most Dangerous Roads Is Finally Being Rebuilt

In 2024, a total of 288,880 traffic crashes were reported, with 71,316 resulting in injuries and 1,099 resulting in fatalities. Throughout the entire year, there were only 32 days with zero traffic fatalities.

The Deadliest Time of Day

The time of day with the most crashes was 3 p.m. to 5:59 p.m., with 65,506 crashes, followed by 6 p.m. to 8:59 p.m. (45,308) and 3 a.m. to 5:59 a.m. (43,570). The spread of crashes during the daytime is significantly higher than at night, with "rush hour" being the time of the day with the most crashes.

However, while there is a clear standout for the time of crashes, the number of fatalities by time of day is another story. While the 3 p.m. - 5:59 p.m. time period has the highest number of crashes and crashes with fatalities, the crashes with fatalities do not correlate with the total number of crashes.

Each subsequent three-hour chunk had over 150 fatalities and under 175 deaths.

• 3 p.m. - 5:59 p.m.: 174
• 9 p.m. - 11:59 p.m.: 168
•  6 p.m. - 8:59 p.m.: 159
• Noon - 2:59 p.m.: 141
• Midnight - 2:59 a.m.: 108

While more crashes happen during the daytime, more fatalities occur during the night/when it is dark outside. It is an interesting statistic.

You can read the traffic report for yourself here.