Maricopa County covers a vast expanse of more than 9,000 square miles in Arizona. A large percentage of the state’s population resides in this county. It’s also true that many of the state’s most dangerous roads are in this county. If you travel on these roads, you’re at great risk of car accidents.
When you get behind the wheel to drive in Maricopa County or elsewhere in the state, you’re obligated to obey traffic laws and to remain alert and cautious to reduce the chance of a collision. However, you can be the most careful and skilled driver in the state and still get in an accident if you’re sharing the road with someone who disregards traffic laws or is dealing with distraction or impairment while driving.
Car accidents are a common occurrence in Maricopa
The following list includes some of the most dangerous roads in Arizona, most of which happen to run through Maricopa County:
- 43rd Avenue
- McDowell Road
- Indian School Road
- Bell Road
- Bethany Home Road
- Thomas Road
- Interstate 10
Some sections of these roads are more dangerous than others, such as Exit 157 to Exit 152 on I-10. In approximately two years’ time, there were 24 fatalities on the stretch of 43rd Avenue from W. Lamar Road to W. McDowell Road. Thousands of people have died or suffered severe injuries while traveling on these roads in recent years.
2 factors cause the most collisions on these roads
Teams that analyze crash statistics have studied data over a span of several years regarding the most dangerous roads in Arizona. In many car accidents along these dangerous roadways, drivers who wreck often have one of two factors in common. Either they were speeding moments before the collision occurred or were in an intoxicated state, sometimes both. It is not uncommon for careless or reckless drivers to receive citations following a collision or face criminal charges, such as drunk driving.
While you might be able to take an alternate route on occasion, sometimes you might have no choice but to travel through a high-risk area. If a speeding or drunk driver hits you and causes injury, you are entitled to request compensation for damages. This typically involves litigation, where a civil court judge (or jury) hears a case and then determines whether the defendant is liable. Court-awarded compensation often helps those recovering from car accidents to offset expenses associated with their injuries, such as medical bills, property damage or lost wages.
