Hwy 16 and King Street displaced the Queen Street and Hwy 16 Frontage Road as the most dangerous intersection in Smithers last year.
According to recently released ICBC date, there were six collisions at that intersection in 2022, one more than the Queen Street location which had the second most at five. In 2o21, it was the other way around with Queen Street recording six and King Street only four.
Although those two locations tend to alternate as most dangerous, over the past five years Hwy 16 and King Street is far and away the worst intersection in town with 30 collisions since 2018 compared to Queen Street’s 19.
Of the 85 collisions in 2022, 22 involved casualties (the ICBC data does not distinguish between injuries and fatalities).
Last year was a little above the overall five-year average of 77 collisions and exactly average for casualty collisions at 22.
Other notorious intersections between 2018 and 2022 include Hwy 16 and Tatlow Road (15), 16th Avenue and Hwy 16 (13), Hwy 16 and Main Street (11), King Street and 4th Avenue (10) and King Street and the Frontage Road (10).
Data on the contributing factors of collisions in Smithers is not available, but provincially driver distraction (which includes cell phone use) had a slight edge over speed as the most common in 2022 at 28 per cent compared to 27 per cent.
Over the past 10 years speed has been the most common contributing factor for collisions in B.C. at an average of 29 per cent compared to 28 per cent for driver distraction
Impaired driving (including alcohol, drugs and medication) is consistently the third most common factor at an aver of 22 per cent of collisions.
ICBC reminds motorists that the vast majority of crashes are avoidable. Slow down, put cell phones away and do not drive when drinking or consuming drugs, including cannabis products.
editor@interior-news.com
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