Traffic & Transit
'Most Deadly' Road In Suffolk County Identified In New Report
The deadliest roadway in Suffolk County had 17 crashes from 2017 to 2019, a new report says.
SUFFOLK COUNTY, NY — The most "deadly road" in Suffolk County is New York State Route 25, with 17 fatal crashes from 2017 to 2019, a new study by MoneyGeek said.
MoneyGeek released a report analyzing the most deadly roads in New York, based on fatality data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration from 2017 to 2019, including those that involved pedestrians and bicyclists, to find the deadliest 5-mile stretches of road.
New York State Route 25 extends from New York City to Orient Point, and in Suffolk County, is called Jericho Turnpike until it becomes Main Street in Smithtown, then Middle Country Road in central Suffolk. In Riverhead, the roadway becomes Main Street again before being dubbed Main Road as it extends through Southold Town to the Cross Sound Ferry terminal at Orient Point.
Find out what's happening in Riverheadfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
On the East End, SR-25 is the "most deadly road in Riverhead," with two fatal crashes, the study said. Riverhead had nine fatal crashes from 2017 to 2019, with 33 percent attributed to drunk driving, compared to the state average of crashes related to drunk driving, which is 20 percent, the study said.
Drunk driving was reported in higher percentages than the state average in other areas on the East End: Southampton Town had 17 fatal crashes from 2017 to 2019 with 53 percent drunk driving-related, compared to the 20-percent state average, the study said. Also on the South Fork, New York State Route 27 is the deadliest road in Southampton, with two fatal crashes reported in the study.
Find out what's happening in Riverheadfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
The study also showed that distracted driving was involved in 13 percent of accidents, with 360 of the 2,725 fatal accidents in the state involving distracted driving.
The 20-percent of crashes related to drunk driving accounted for 549 of the 2,725 total in New York State, the study said.
Speeding contributed to 28 percent of accidents statewide, or 756 fatal accidents from 2017 to 2019, the report said.
And, MoneyGeek said, September is the deadliest month on New York roadways.
To see the full study, click here.
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.
