Sacramento Ranks #1 in California for Dangerous Driving — And the City Knows It

Sacramento has a traffic safety crisis, the numbers speak for themselves. According to the California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS) 2023 Crash Rankings, the City of Sacramento ranks #1 out of 15 major California cities in three of the most critical crash categories: alcohol-involved collisions, speed-related collisions, and the composite safety score. In a group that includes Los Angeles, San Diego, San Jose, and San Francisco, Sacramento is the worst.

These are not close calls. In 2023, Sacramento recorded 454 victims killed or injured in alcohol-involved crashes — ranking first. It recorded 745 speed-related fatal and injury crashes — again, first. Its composite score, which aggregates alcohol, speed, hit-and-run, and nighttime crashes into a single measure, also came in at number one. The city also ranked second in total fatal and injury collisions (4,214 victims) and second in nighttime crashes.

For anyone who drives, walks, bikes, or takes transit in Sacramento, these numbers should be alarming. For anyone who has been hurt in a collision on a Sacramento street, they confirm what you already know: this city's roads are dangerous.

Sacramento is not ignoring the problem — at least not on paper. The city adopted a Vision Zero Action Plan in 2018 with the stated goal of eliminating traffic fatalities and serious injuries. It has since launched a Vision Zero Crash Data Dashboard showing fatal and serious injury crash data from 2013 through 2023. It is currently updating the Vision Zero Action Plan, with a new version expected in spring 2026.

The city has also kicked off corridor-specific safety plans for some of its most dangerous roads. The Fruitridge Road Safety and Mobility Plan covers a stretch of Fruitridge Road between Riverside Boulevard and Stockton Boulevard — a corridor on the city's High Injury Network where a disproportionate share of fatal and serious crashes occur. The Arden-Auburn Mobility Plan covers Arden Way and Auburn Boulevard, two more High Injury Network corridors. Both plans are in early community engagement phases.

But the plans are still just plans. The OTS rankings are based on 2023 data (the most recent date available) — five years after Vision Zero was adopted. And Sacramento still ranks first in the state for alcohol and speed crashes. The gap between what the city says it is doing and what the data shows is actually happening is significant.

In early March 2026, the Sacramento City Council approved $193,600 in federal Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP) funding for pedestrian safety upgrades at four intersections identified on the city's High Injury Network, according to the Sacramento City Express. The four intersections are:

Folsom Boulevard and Seville Way

Raley Boulevard and Santa Ana Avenue

W Street and 8th Street

Alhambra Boulevard and X Street

The upgrades include Rectangular Rapid Flashing Beacons — pedestrian-activated yellow lights that warn drivers someone is crossing — along with new curb ramps, signage, flexible posts, and refreshed striping. Construction is expected to begin this month and be completed by summer 2026.

The OTS data, the Vision Zero dashboard, and the city's own planning documents all tell the same story: Sacramento's streets are among the most dangerous in California, and the infrastructure that is supposed to protect drivers, pedestrians, and cyclists is not keeping up. The city acknowledges this. The data proves it.

If you have been injured in a collision on a Sacramento street, these are not abstract policy questions. They are evidence. They show that the city has known for years which corridors and intersections are the most dangerous. They show what safety measures have and have not been implemented. And they can be relevant to understanding how and why your crash happened.

Sacramento Accident Attorney Michael Rehm can obtain and analyze the city's own crash data, traffic studies, and planning documents to determine whether a dangerous road condition contributed to your injuries — and whether the city or other parties (or both) bear responsibility for failing to address a known hazard.

Attorney Michael Rehm was born and raised in Sacramento. He grew up on the same streets that appear in the city's crash data. He went to school here. He drives, walks, and lives in this community. When he reviews a collision report from Fruitridge Road or Alhambra Boulevard, he is not reading about an abstract location on a map — he is looking at a road he has traveled his entire life.

If you or a loved one has been injured in a traffic collision in Sacramento, contact The Law Office of Michael Rehm at (800) 978-0754 for a free consultation.