Kentucky is a diverse state with much rural territory and very little in terms of urban areas. The largest percentage of the population actually lives in and around the urban regions like Louisville, Lexington, and Covington with significant populations in the west end of the state in Owensboro and Paducah. The concentration of population also is reflected when statistics regarding auto accidents are inspected as well. Louisville easily experiences the highest numbers in terms of both fatalities and accident injuries, and counties that are primarily agricultural economies tend to have much lower numbers.
Rural accidents
The eastern portion of the state was easily the safest with respect to the raw numbers of total accidents. One eastern four-county region reflected a significant number of injuries, but it was also the highest population in the mostly mountainous eastern half of the state. The flat lands of west Kentucky also experienced a high volume of motor vehicle accidents, but it is also a major tourist area as well around Kentucky and Barkley Lakes. Among 100,000 resident population control groups, northwest Kentucky was safest.
Urban Kentucky
The few urban areas in the state were clearly the leading dangerous driving regions, particularly in Jefferson County and adjacent counties. Fayette County was also a common location for serious auto mishaps, which is the area in and around Lexington and Versailles. The counties situated along the Ohio River also had a higher number of accident reports per 100,000 residents, which could also be due in part to the interstate transit that occurs regularly from much more populous Indiana.
Among the states in the central and eastern portion of the country, Kentucky actually ranked highest by a small margin. The curvy nature of most Kentucky two-lane highways along with the map of interstates going in both directions could have contributed to the increased numbers. Kentucky is a major drive-through state for motorists going south to Florida. Additionally, it is also a hub for a significant amount of commercial vehicle traffic, which commonly indicates an increase in the number of fatalities due to big-rig collisions and single-vehicle accidents.