By Lily Levin | The Palmetto State has previously been home to some of the country’s worst drivers — and a new 2023 report said this year was no exception.
South Carolina ranked eighth among states with the most incidents per driver, according to a LendingTree study of the 50 states and the District of Columbia. The assessment looked at wrecks, DUI charges, speeding citations and other traffic violations using a year’s worth of data from insurance quotes ending in October.
“It’s genuinely an intense experience every time you leave your house” to drive somewhere, said South Carolina native Avery Detitta, who is currently studying at the College of Charleston.
According to the data, the Palmetto State had a little more than 29 incidents such as wrecks and violations per 1,000 drivers. But it wasn’t as bad as Rhode Island, topping the list with more than 51 incidents per 1,000. Maine took the second spot with just over 50 and California came in third at about 40 per 1,000 drivers. The safest place to drive was Michigan, which boasted a slim rate of 11.28 incidents per 1,000 drivers, the study reported.
Lowcountry residents told the Charleston City Paper they weren’t surprised by South Carolina’s showing .
Detitta said classmates often ask to borrow her car, but both she and a friend have agreed to always decline requests from their out-of-state peers. That’s because of the level of traffic, Detitta explained, and the problematic “way the roads are set up” are things unique to South Carolina. She added that these issues span the entire state.
“It’s the same in Charleston and Columbia. There are just a lot of intersections that were very poorly made.”
When it came to the rate of car crashes, South Carolina ranked even higher. The state, with nearly 20 accidents per 1,000, came in sixth place — just behind the neighboring North Carolina. Massachusetts, Rhode Island and California took first, second and third, respectively; Michigan again came in last.
Not a shock
But the state’s large number of wrecks wasn’t much of a shock to residents, either. Devynn Sweat told the City Paper that she witnesses traffic accidents constantly in downtown Charleston, where she’s been living her entire life. People “are losing their lives daily,” she added.
Fellow downtown resident Tammy Malloy concurred. “Charleston’s full of dangerous driving, and I’ve traveled all over the country.” In Atlanta, where Malloy lived for eight years, she said she “never had a problem.” Charleston, however, “was an adjustment.”
Though Malloy doesn’t drive anymore, she remarked that the conditions have only been getting worse — and they’re especially lacking for pedestrians. “You really have to watch [as a pedestrian]. [Drivers] don’t pay attention to pedestrians. I see it all the time.”
When asked why South Carolina seems full of bad drivers, Sweat spoke of a false sense of urgency that people tend to have when they’re trying to get somewhere. Detitta said the roads were to blame. But both agreed with Malloy, who said, “Drivers need to do better.”
- Lily Levin is a reporter with the Charleston City Paper. Have a comment? Send to: feedback@statehousereport.com
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