Ocala Road Safety Overview
Ocala, Florida, has a population of 68,426. As a small city located nearly right in the middle of the state, you might expect it to experience a high number of crashes. However, the city only sees thousands of car accidents in Ocala each year – a relative low number
Using statistics from the Florida Traffic Safety Dashboard, Ocala is home to about 0.3% of Florida’s population and only accounts for just under 0.6% of the state’s traffic crashes.
Crashes in Ocala
Ocala saw a total of 4,101 traffic accidents in a recent year. Unfortunately, the Florida Traffic Safety Dashboard does not provide specific details about these crashes, but the Florida Crash Dashboard displays details about crashes across Marion County.
These points provide a broad picture of the crashes that occurred in the Ocala metro area: Marion County experienced 6,529 traffic crashes, and roughly 63% of these occurred in Ocala.
Additionally, Marion County’s crashes included 149 pedestrian accidents and 124 bicycle accidents; the remaining crashes involved passenger automobiles, commercial trucks, and motorcycles.
Ocala Crash Outcomes
Across Marion County, crashes in a recent year caused the following:
- 91 fatal crashes
- 3,037 non-fatal injury crashes
These collisions caused the following outcomes:
- 112 fatalities
- 4,958 non-fatal injuries
Of these injuries and deaths, 54 serious injuries were inflicted, and 17 fatalities occurred in Ocala specifically.
These can be broken down into the following categories:
- 14 seriously injured and seven fatally injured pedestrians and cyclists
- 12 seriously injured and two fatally injured motorcyclists
- Three seriously injured truck drivers
Serious injuries are those that incapacitate a victim, leaving them unable to leave the scene of an accident without assistance, such as an ambulance rushing them to an emergency room. Examples of serious injuries include brain trauma, severe lacerations, and major fractures.
Florida also tracks minor and possible injuries, although its dashboards do not display these numbers for these injuries. Minor injuries are visible but do not incapacitate the victim. Bruises, minor lacerations, and abrasions would qualify as minor injuries.
Lastly, there are possible injuries that cause symptoms like dizziness or pain without any visible wounds. Examples of possible injuries include minor concussions, joint sprains, and muscle strains.
Causes of Ocala Traffic Accidents
The most recent Florida Crash Facts report lists the most common causes of traffic accidents recently, which are as follows:
Distracted Driving
Distracted driving occurs when a driver performs any activity that occupies their mind, eyes, or hands.
Some common causes of distracted driving include the following:
- The use of electronic devices
- Talking to passengers
- Eating or drinking
- Reading a navigation system
- Adjusting the stereo
A distracted driver has difficulty seeing the road or traffic and responding; as a result, they may cause rear-end collisions or hit pedestrians or bicyclists.
Speeding
Speeding is another leading cause of crashes in Florida, and drivers typically end up speeding in one of two ways: They either exceed the posted speed limit or drive too fast for the road, given its current weather and traffic conditions.
Speeding drivers can lose control of their vehicles, particularly on congested streets or highways. And given the extra force involved, the severity of any crash they cause is likely to be higher.
Failing to Yield the Right of Way
Intersection accidents often result from right-of-way violations.
These risky behaviors can take many forms, including the following:
- Running stop signs or red lights
- Disobeying yield signs and yellow lights
- Turning left in front of vehicles traveling straight
- Making a right turn without waiting for an opening in cross-traffic
Failing to yield also causes many pedestrian accidents. In these crashes, drivers might fail to see pedestrians or try to get through the crosswalk before the pedestrian reaches the vehicle’s lane.
Driving Safely In Ocala
Ocala’s various traffic crashes most often result from avoidable causes. If you slow down, put your phone away, and negotiate intersections carefully, you can significantly reduce your risk of a crash while driving around the city.