150
Fatal crashes
159
Fatalities
29%
Drunk driver
21
Avg per year
Crashes by year
| Year | Crashes | Fatalities | Drunk driver |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 16 | 19 | 5 |
| 2018 | 22 | 22 | 6 |
| 2019 | 20 | 20 | 6 |
| 2020 | 17 | 18 | 6 |
| 2021 | 26 | 28 | 9 |
| 2022 | 25 | 27 | 8 |
| 2023 | 24 | 25 | 4 |
Cities in Santa Cruz County
Fatal crashes by city within Santa Cruz County. Need crash history at a specific address or intersection? Our intersection report shows every fatal crash within any radius of a GPS coordinate.
| City | Crashes | Fatalities |
|---|---|---|
| SANTA CRUZ | 22 | 22 |
| WATSONVILLE | 21 | 22 |
| CAPITOLA | 3 | 3 |
| SCOTTS VALLEY | 3 | 4 |
When crashes happen
By month
| Month | Crashes |
|---|---|
| January | 9 |
| February | 15 |
| March | 17 |
| April | 10 |
| May | 11 |
| June | 11 |
| July | 11 |
| August | 10 |
| September | 12 |
| October | 15 |
| November | 17 |
| December | 12 |
Most dangerous hours
| Hour | Crashes |
|---|---|
| 18:00 | 12 |
| 16:00 | 12 |
| 15:00 | 12 |
| 21:00 | 10 |
| 14:00 | 9 |
| 17:00 | 9 |
| 06:00 | 8 |
| 19:00 | 8 |
| 01:00 | 7 |
| 22:00 | 7 |
Vehicles involved in fatal crashes
| Make | Vehicles involved |
|---|---|
| Toyota | 33 |
| Honda | 23 |
| Ford | 20 |
| Chevrolet | 16 |
| Subaru | 8 |
| Dodge | 8 |
| Harley-Davidson | 7 |
| Volvo | 7 |
| BMW | 6 |
| Nissan/Datsun | 6 |
Conditions
Weather
| Weather | Crashes |
|---|---|
| Clear | 130 |
| Cloudy | 13 |
| Rain | 7 |
Collision type
| Type | Crashes |
|---|---|
| Single vehicle / pedestrian / object | 114 |
| Front-to-Front | 18 |
| Angle | 9 |
| Front-to-Rear | 6 |
| Sideswipe - Same Direction | 2 |
| Sideswipe - Opposite Direction | 1 |
Need crash data for a specific location in Santa Cruz County?
Our intersection report shows every fatal crash within any radius of a GPS coordinate — with a map, event sequence, contributing factors, vehicle and person details. Used by attorneys for discovery and insurance teams for risk assessment.
For programmatic access to Santa Cruz County crash data, see the API guide. $19/mo for full access.
Data source: NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), 2017-2023. Updated annually.
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