Study Names 10 Deadliest Washington Roads: 9 Are In Puget Sound

SEATTLE — All but one of Washington's 10 deadliest roadways can be found in King or Pierce County, according to a recent study by MoneyGeek.

For their deadliest road rankings, MoneyGeek says their analysts looked at all 1,518 deadly crashes in Washington between 2017 and 2019, and plotted them out on Washington's 67,632 miles of road to see which places were the most life-threatening.

Here are the 10 most deadly stretches of road in Washington, based on their findings:

1. Aurora Avenue (SR-99) between N. Winona Avenue and N. 155th Street.
   • SR-99 between Seattle and Shoreline had 9 fatal accidents, averaging 2.2 deadly crashes per mile.
2. Pacific Highway (SR-99) between S. 252nd Street and S. 176th Street.
   • The second-deadliest stretch of road is also on the 99 between Seatac and Des Moines. It averaged 1.8 deaths per mile over the two year.
3. I-5 between S. 96 St. and Exit 133
   • This stretch of I-5 between Tacoma and Lakewood is home to numerous commute crashes, averaging 1.6 deadly crashes per mile.
4. I-5 between Steilacoom-DuPoint Road and Gravelly Lake Drive.
   • Eight people died on this stretch of I-5 running along Joint Base Lewis-McChord over the two-year period. WSDOT has been working on several projects in this area, aimed at reducing congestion and increasing driver safety.
5. Pacific Highway (SR-99) between S. 16th Avenue and S. 263rd Street.
   • The 99 returns a third time, this time between Federal Way and Kent and averaging 1.2 deadly crashes per mile.
6. SR 167 between Tacoma Junction and N.W. 11th.
   • This popular thoroughfare from Tacoma to Puyallup had six deadly crashes, averaging 1.2 fatalities per mile.
7. SR-181 between Meeker St. and S. 180th Street.
   • Another roadway in south King County, this road connecting Tukwila and Kent averaged 1.3 fatalities per mile.
8. SR-516 between SR-167 and S. Military Road.
   • Yet another deadly road in the Kent area, this stretch of the 516 can take drivers from SR-167 close to I-5. It averaged 2.6 fatalities per mile, with five deadly accidents over a short distance.
9. I-5 from Exit 137 to Exit 142A.
   • This portion of I-5 north of Fife was home to five deadly accidents in two years.
10. I-5 from Exit 14 to Exit 16.
    • The only road not in King or Pierce County, this portion of I-5 connects Ridgefield to La Center and suffered 5 deadly accidents for 1.4 fatal crashes per mile.

Unfortunately, it likely comes as little surprise to commuters that I-5 and SR-99 are so prevalent on this list, as both are among the busiest and most congested roads in Western Washington.

Other findings in MoneyGeek's study include that 32.9 percent of deadly crashes involved drunk driving, speed contributed to 30.8 percent of accidents, and distracted driving was involved in 24.2 percent of accidents — making Washington the sixth worst state for distracted driving.

>> Read the full results of MoneyGeek' study.