Pandemic resulting in fewer traffic crashes, lower insurance rates, decreased pollution

Apr. 10--TRAVERSE CITY -- Although the COVID-19 pandemic is claiming tens of thousands of lives across the United States and causing exponentially more to fall ill, law enforcement and the Michigan Department of Transportation are expecting fewer deaths and injuries on the roads.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's executive order for Michigan residents to stay in their homes and avoid unnecessary travel has left many roads, streets and highways with far less traffic than normal. That means fewer crashes.

"Being out there on patrol, we have seen a significant decrease in vehicles on the roadway," Michigan State Police Lt. Derrick Carroll said. "I'm sure that's going to translate to fewer crashes and deaths, but it's really too early to tell the impact this is going to have.

"I can tell you it's going to go down, it's just a matter of how much that we don't know."

Compared to last year at this time, there are 27 fewer fatalities (179) and 186 fewer serious injuries (882), according to the Michigan Department of Transportation.

Kendall Grove with the Michigan Office of Highway Safety Planning provided statistics simply looking at March 2019 compared to March 2020. Numbers showed that crashes decreased by more than 50 percent from 23,090 to 11,069, deaths dropped two-thirds from 67 to 22, and injuries fell by nearly half from 5,240 to 2,636.

Carroll said it is not common for those numbers to fluctuate that much from year to year, but said it is difficult to provide accurate statistics right away because people may succumb to their injuries days later or report to the hospital in the days following a crash after refusing medical treatment at the scene.

Data provided by Grand Traverse County Sheriff's Capt. Chris Clark showed that in March 2019 there were 148 crashes resulting in property damage and 13 resulting in injuries. Compared to March 2020, there were 87 property damage crashes and a slight increase in injuries to 18. Clark also said the sheriff's department saw an 11 percent decrease in all calls for service when comparing those two months.

"We've had a fairly decent March for weather, so that could have contributed to the drop as well," Clark said. "We would hope that with the direction being provided on social distancing and people remaining home would continue to lessen the flow of traffic on the roads. Then, in theory, you'd think there'd be less crashes."

Traverse City Police Capt. Jim Bussell said crashes have also noticeably dropped, although he was not able to provide exact statistics.

"From talking to some of the road patrol officers, it just sounds like there's a significant decrease in traffic, which would affect all of those things -- traffic stops, traffic crashes, all of that," Bussell said.

The reduction in driving could have another benefit on drivers -- one affecting their pocketbooks.

Both Travelers Insurance and GEICO announced they are providing a 15 percent credit on auto insurance premiums, the Associated Press reported. Travelers is applying the credit for April and May, while GEICO is extending the credit until Oct. 7.

GEICO estimates the benefit to its 18 million auto and 1 million motorcycle customers will be approximately $2.5 billion. Travelers officials said they will continue to assess the program as more information comes to light about the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on the driving environment and auto claims.

Fewer cars on the road also mean less emissions.

Reduced air pollutants are already being seen in the United States. The Environmental Protection Agency's Air Quality Index categorized air quality in the U.S. in March 2019 as "moderate." The EPA reported an improvement in air quality by 20 percent when compared to March 2020, which falls into the "good" category.

The EPA also recorded the longest stretch of "good" air quality in March seen since at least 1995.

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