The Dark Side of Longer Days: Springtime Is the Deadliest Season for Speed‑Related Crashes in the United States

Spring may bring longer days and open highways, but across the United States it also marks the deadliest season for speeding.

From March through May alone, more than 26,000 people were killed in speeding‑related crashes between 2014 and 2023 in the United States, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, turning springtime highways into memorials for lives cut short.

“No parent should have to pick out a headstone because someone treated the open road like a racetrack,” said Matt Clark, managing partner and attorney at the Law Office of Chain | Cohn | Clark. “Speeding is not just a bad habit, it’s a choice that shatters families in an instant.”

Speeding has claimed more than 11,000 lives every year in the last decade in our country, acording to data highlighted by the NHTSA, and nearly a third of all traffic deaths involve a speeding driver. The spring months — March, April, and May — stand out as the period with the highest concentration of speeding‑related fatalities nationwide.

In 2023 alone, 11,775 people were killed in speeding‑related crashes in the United States, representing 29% of all traffic deaths that year. California is at the center of this problem, with 1,303 people killed in speeding‑related crashes in 2023, about one‑third of all traffic fatalities in the state. That means hundreds of families entered summer without someone they loved, simply because another driver refused to slow down.

In Kern County, unsafe speed was listed as the cause of 863 crashes in 2024, according the latest statistics available from the California Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System. The crashes killed 20 people and injured 1,314 others. Speeding was the cause of 22% of all crashes in Kern County in 2024.

Several factors come together in the spring that make speeding especially dangerous:

• Better weather and clearer roads invite drivers to go “just a little faster,” especially on dry highways and rural roads.
• Longer daylight hours and more trips — spring breaks, graduations, weekend getaways — put more vehicles on the road, often driven by younger, less‑experienced drivers.
• Risky behavior that began during the pandemic, including high‑speed driving and street racing, has lingered on many roadways and is most visible in warmer months.​

National data show that young men are especially over‑represented in speeding‑related fatal crashes. In 2023, 37% of male drivers ages 15 to 20 years old, and 33% of male drivers ages 21 to 24 involved in fatal crashes were speeding at the time. For families in Kern County and across California, that means teen and young‑adult drivers are at particularly high risk during spring weekends and school breaks.

Behind every springtime statistic is a story that the Law Office of Chain | Cohn | Clark knows all too well: a Bakersfield high‑school senior killed on the way home from a friend’s house when a speeding driver blew through a red light; a farmworker family on Highway 99 struck by a driver weaving through traffic at freeway speeds, leaving children with life‑altering injuries; a college student returning from spring break, hit by an SUV going 90 mph in a 65‑mph zone.

“Speed determines whether a driver can stop, whether a mistake is survivable, and how violent the impact will be,” Clark said. “At highway speeds, just an extra 10–20 mph can mean the difference between a serious injury and a fatality.”

You can’t control other drivers, but you can dramatically reduce your own risk and protect your passengers with a few deliberate choices. Here are a few ways you can protect yourself and others this spring:

1. Slow down, especially on familiar roads. Most deadly speeding crashes happen on non‑interstate roads and at night, where drivers feel “comfortable” and let their speed creep up. Set cruise control at the limit on long stretches and resist the urge to match the fastest traffic.
2. Build in extra time. Rushing is one of the most common excuses drivers give after a speeding crash. Leaving 10–15 minutes earlier can eliminate the pressure that leads to tailgating, weaving, and high‑risk passing.
3. Watch for teens and young adults behind the wheel. Talk openly with young drivers in your life about springtime risks. Share that nearly one in three young male drivers in fatal crashes were speeding—and that no social event or class is worth someone’s life.
4. Treat speed like DUI. If a friend insists on driving aggressively or “showing off” their car, take their keys or refuse the ride. Offer to drive, call a ride‑share, or make alternate plans.
5. Document dangerous drivers. When safe, note the location, direction, and a brief description of an obviously reckless, speeding driver, and report it to law enforcement. In some cases, that call can help prevent a future crash.

When a speeding driver causes a crash, the aftermath can be overwhelming: medical bills, lost income, long‑term rehabilitation, and, in the worst cases, funeral expenses and lifetime grief, Clark said. Proving speed is often crucial in holding the at‑fault driver fully accountable. That can involve obtaining and analyzing police reports, black‑box data, skid marks, and surveillance or dash‑cam footage; using experts to reconstruct the collision and show how excessive speed caused or worsened the crash; and demonstrating that speeding wasn’t just a split‑second mistake but part of a pattern of reckless driving, especially if there are prior tickets or complaints.

Chain | Cohn | Clark has extensive experience in serious and fatal crash cases where speed was a major factor, particularly along high‑risk corridors like Highway 99, Intertate 5, and busy city arterials in Bakersfield and Kern County.

“The firm’s goal is simple: to secure full compensation for victims while sending a clear message that speeding kills and will not be treated lightly,” Clark said.

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If you or someone you know is injured in an accident at the fault of someone else, or injured on the job no matter whose fault it is, contact the attorneys at Chain | Cohn | Clark by calling (661) 323-4000, or fill out a free consultation form, text, or chat with us at chainlaw.com.