The number of people injured or killed in crashes on Redding streets spiked in 2023, according to the most recent data released by the California Office of Traffic Safety.
Data compiled by the agency over the past two years and published in January showed 271 people died or were injured in traffic collisions in the city in 2023 — 43 more than in 2022.
Those deaths and injuries accounted for more than a third (37%) of the 726 traffic injuries/fatalities in Shasta County. In 2022 that percentage was closer to 31%.
However, except for 2022, the number of people hurt or killed in Redding in 2023 was still lower than any other year going back to 2017, according to the state.
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The state’s data also shows more pedestrians and bicyclists were killed or injured in Redding city limits than throughout the rest of Shasta County in 2023. However, the number of motorcyclists and people killed in DUI and hit-and-run incidents was higher outside the city.
Here’s what else the state’s latest report said about people injured in traffic crashes in Redding and Shasta County, and how those numbers compare to previous years.
How many pedestrians died or were injured on Redding and other Shasta County roads?
In all, 21 of the county’s 37 pedestrian injuries and fatalities in 2023 happened in Redding — home to roughly half the county’s population. Of those pedestrians, four were 14 years old or younger, and four were 65 or older, the data showed.
About the same number of pedestrians died or were injured in traffic incidents in 2022: 21 in Redding, 38 overall in Shasta County.
Those two years mark a drop in the annual pedestrian fatalities and injuries over a seven year period in both the city and the county. Except for 2020, Redding’s pedestrian fatality/injury numbers went down every year from 2017 to 2022.
How many bicyclists and motorcyclists died or were injured in Redding traffic crashes?
Twenty-one of the 28 bicyclists injured or killed on Shasta County roads in 2023 crashed within Redding city limits. Those numbers are close to those in 2022, when 20 cyclists were hurt or died in Redding; 33 countywide.
The reverse is true for motorcyclists. Only a third (19) of the 60 motorcyclists injured or killed in Shasta County in 2023 crashed in Redding. In 2022, that percentage was even lower: 17 out of 74.
How many people died or were injured in speeding, DUI and hit-and-run incidents in Shasta County?
While speed-related injuries and fatalities in Shasta County were about the same in 2022 and 2023 (124 and 123 respectively), the number of people hurt or killed in speeding crashes in Redding dropped to 40 in 2023 — down from 51 in 2022.
While the number of people arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence jumped to 930 arrests countywide — up from 726 arrests in 2022 — Redding had fewer DUI arrests: 249 in 2023 compared to 275 in 2022.
Also in 2023, the number of people injured or killed in hit-and-run incidents stayed about the same as those reported in 2022. In Redding, 14 people died or were injured in hit-and-runs, 35 overall in Shasta County; compared to 13 in Redding and 37 overall in 2022.
For more traffic data by county and city, go to ots.ca.gov.
Jessica Skropanic is a features reporter for the Record Searchlight/USA Today Network. She covers science, arts, social issues and news stories. Follow her on Twitter @RS_JSkropanic and on Facebook. Join Jessica on Record Searchlight Facebook groups Get Out! Nor Cal , Today in Shasta County and Shaping Redding’s Future. To support and sustain this work, please subscribe today. Thank you.
This article originally appeared on Redding Record Searchlight: Redding traffic injuries, deaths spiked in 2023. See the data
Reporting by Jessica Skropanic, Redding Record Searchlight / Redding Record Searchlight
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