Fatal crash rate · Kentucky · Road
Fatal crashes on US-31 in Kentucky
Every fatal crash NHTSA coded to US Route 31, also written as Dixie Hwy, Bardstown Rd, W Dixie Hwy, in Kentucky, 2020 to 2024, with the year, the county and what the record says about each. Fatal crashes only, and a count, not a rate: the federal record has no traffic volume for a road.
US-31 in Kentucky2020 to 2024 · fatal crashes recorded by NHTSA
85fatal crashes over five years · 93 deaths
Over 2020 to 2024, NHTSA recorded 85 fatal crashes on US-31 in Kentucky, in which 93 people died. That is 2% of the 3,566 fatal crashes recorded in Kentucky in those years, about 17 a year. 1 of the 85 were coded to a ramp, frontage or service road of US-31 rather than the main lanes. In 2024, the latest year, 1 was recorded.
- Counted
- FARS crashes 2020 to 2024 in Kentucky whose TWAY_ID or TWAY_ID2 begins US-31, with or without a local name (Dixie Hwy, Bardstown Rd, W Dixie Hwy)
- Share
- 85 ÷ 3,566 fatal crashes in Kentucky = 2%
Every year, 2020 to 2024
| Year | Fatal crashes on US-31 | Deaths | Fatal crashes in Kentucky | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 12 | 15 | 709 | 2% |
| 2021 | 26 | 27 | 734 | 4% |
| 2022 | 22 | 25 | 693 | 3% |
| 2023 | 24 | 25 | 767 | 3% |
| 2024 | 1 | 1 | 663 | 0% |
2024 is NHTSA’s Annual Report File and will be revised when the final file replaces it.
Where on US-31: by county, 2020 to 2024
The counties the crashes were coded to, alphabetical. A road’s count in a county depends on how many miles of it run there and how busy they are; the page does not rank the counties. Each name opens the county page with its own rate.
What the record says about those crashes, 2020 to 2024
Every figure is a count of the 85 fatal crashes NHTSA coded to US-31 in Kentucky over five years, from the fields FARS records. Nothing is estimated or inferred.
| Road type | Crashes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Interstate | 0 | 0% |
| Other freeway or expressway | 0 | 0% |
| Other principal arterial | 61 | 72% |
| Minor arterial | 18 | 21% |
| Major collector | 6 | 7% |
| Minor collector | 0 | 0% |
| Local road | 0 | 0% |
| Unknown or not reported | 0 | 0% |
| Rural | 31 | 36% |
| Urban | 54 | 64% |
| Time of day | Crashes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Midnight to 5:59 am | 15 | 18% |
| 6 am to 11:59 am | 15 | 18% |
| Noon to 5:59 pm | 25 | 29% |
| 6 pm to 11:59 pm | 30 | 35% |
| Hour unknown | 0 | 0% |
| Light | Crashes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Daylight | 45 | 53% |
| Dark, not lighted (or lighting unknown) | 24 | 28% |
| Dark, lighted | 13 | 15% |
| Dawn or dusk | 3 | 4% |
| Unknown or not reported | 0 | 0% |
| Day of week | Crashes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Sunday | 11 | 13% |
| Monday | 13 | 15% |
| Tuesday | 9 | 11% |
| Wednesday | 10 | 12% |
| Thursday | 18 | 21% |
| Friday | 13 | 15% |
| Saturday | 11 | 13% |
| Month | Crashes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| January | 7 | 8% |
| February | 5 | 6% |
| March | 5 | 6% |
| April | 6 | 7% |
| May | 5 | 6% |
| June | 9 | 11% |
| July | 17 | 20% |
| August | 8 | 9% |
| September | 8 | 9% |
| October | 3 | 4% |
| November | 7 | 8% |
| December | 5 | 6% |
| Weather | Crashes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Clear | 59 | 69% |
| Cloudy | 11 | 13% |
| Rain | 10 | 12% |
| Snow, sleet or freezing rain | 0 | 0% |
| Fog, smog or smoke | 2 | 2% |
| Severe wind, blowing sand or other | 3 | 4% |
| Unknown or not reported | 0 | 0% |
| Involving | Crashes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| A pedestrian | 20 | 24% |
| A bicyclist or other cyclist | 2 | 2% |
| A speeding-related vehicle | 17 | 20% |
| A driver police reported as drinking | 7 | 8% |
| A large truck (over 10,000 lb) | 9 | 11% |
| A motorcycle | 13 | 15% |
| A hit-and-run vehicle | 12 | 14% |
| A teen driver (15 to 19) | 7 | 8% |
Road type is FARS FUNC_SYS for the crash, which can differ from the route’s class where a crash was coded on a frontage road or ramp; speeding is any vehicle coded SPEEDREL 2 to 5; drinking is any driver coded DRINKING = 1 (police-reported, not a blood-alcohol test).
How this is counted
- The road is the designation FARS wrote. Each crash in NHTSA’s Fatality Analysis Reporting System names the trafficway it was on (
TWAY_ID) and, at an intersection, a second one (TWAY_ID2). NHTSA standardises the route designation (I-45,US-59,SR-6) and the police often add a local name after it (I-45/NORTH FWY) or a ramp or frontage word. The page counts every crash whose designation is US-31, once, whatever followed it. Nothing else is matched: a crash coded only to a local street name is not here even if that street is this road. - Same number, another state, another road. US-31 in Kentucky is counted within Kentucky only. Where the route continues into a neighbouring state it has its own page there, and a State Route number means nothing outside its state.
- Only roads with ten or more fatal crashes over 2020 to 2024 have a page. Fewer is too few to say anything, and the county page already lists the most-named roads in each county as the police wrote them.
- No rate, no rank. The Kentucky page lists every numbered road in route order with its count and nothing else. Roads with more lanes, more miles or more traffic record more fatal crashes; the record cannot separate those from the road’s design.
Informational only, not professional advice. Last reviewed: October 2026. Data snapshot built 2026-10-30.
Other roads in Kentucky
- I-24 32
- I-64 76
- I-65 93
- I-69 18
- I-71 32
- I-75 83
- I-264 31
- I-265 23
- SR-4 25
- SR-7 14
- SR-9 28
- SR-11 30
- SR-15 33
- SR-22 12
- SR-30 11
- SR-32 21
- SR-36 11
- SR-52 11
- SR-54 15
- SR-55 18
- SR-61 54
- SR-70 23
- SR-79 13
- SR-80 39
- SR-90 27
- SR-92 13
- SR-144 10
- SR-146 10
- SR-155 17
- SR-192 10
In route order, first thirty; the full list is on the Kentucky page.