WREG.com

List of deadliest interstates includes 2 in Tennessee

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) – Two of the top five deadliest interstate highways run through Tennessee, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

Stacker analyzed the data from the NHTSA’s 2020 Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) to determine which interstates had the most fatalities. According to the report, I-95 was the deadliest interstate highway in 2020.


The highway runs through 15 states from Maine down to Miami, Florida. I-95 had a reported 379 fatalities in 2020, averaging 19.7 fatalities per 100 miles.

I-40 and I-75, both of which run through Tennessee, landed in the top five. With 270 reported fatalities, I-40, America’s third longest interstate, was also ranked as the third deadliest—averaging 10.6 fatalities per 100 miles.

Interstate 75, which goes through Chattanooga, ranked fourth on the list with 246 fatalities in 2020—averaging 13.8 fatalities per 100 miles.

To see which other highways made the list, you can read Stacker’s 10 interstates with the most fatalities here.

According to the report, FARS data covered 38,824 fatalities in 2020, the highest number of deaths since 2007. The fatality rate per 100 million vehicle miles traveled in 2020 was 1.34—21% higher than in 2019 and the highest rate since 2007.