Fatal crash rate · Virginia · Road
Fatal crashes on I-81 in Virginia
Every fatal crash NHTSA coded to Interstate 81 in Virginia, 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.
I-81 in Virginia2020 to 2024 · fatal crashes recorded by NHTSA
134fatal crashes over five years · 156 deaths
Over 2020 to 2024, NHTSA recorded 134 fatal crashes on I-81 in Virginia, in which 156 people died. That is 3% of the 4,369 fatal crashes recorded in Virginia in those years, about 27 a year. 3 of the 134 were coded to a ramp, frontage or service road of I-81 rather than the main lanes. In 2024, the latest year, 28 were recorded.
- Counted
- FARS crashes 2020 to 2024 in Virginia whose TWAY_ID or TWAY_ID2 begins I-81
- Share
- 134 ÷ 4,369 fatal crashes in Virginia = 3%
Every year, 2020 to 2024
| Year | Fatal crashes on I-81 | Deaths | Fatal crashes in Virginia | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 28 | 35 | 796 | 4% |
| 2021 | 30 | 33 | 906 | 3% |
| 2022 | 28 | 32 | 944 | 3% |
| 2023 | 20 | 27 | 856 | 2% |
| 2024 | 28 | 29 | 867 | 3% |
2024 is NHTSA’s Annual Report File and will be revised when the final file replaces it.
Where on I-81: 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 134 fatal crashes NHTSA coded to I-81 in Virginia over five years, from the fields FARS records. Nothing is estimated or inferred.
| Road type | Crashes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Interstate | 133 | 99% |
| Other freeway or expressway | 0 | 0% |
| Other principal arterial | 0 | 0% |
| Minor arterial | 1 | 1% |
| Major collector | 0 | 0% |
| Minor collector | 0 | 0% |
| Local road | 0 | 0% |
| Unknown or not reported | 0 | 0% |
| Rural | 91 | 68% |
| Urban | 43 | 32% |
| Time of day | Crashes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Midnight to 5:59 am | 35 | 26% |
| 6 am to 11:59 am | 15 | 11% |
| Noon to 5:59 pm | 44 | 33% |
| 6 pm to 11:59 pm | 40 | 30% |
| Hour unknown | 0 | 0% |
| Light | Crashes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Daylight | 64 | 48% |
| Dark, not lighted (or lighting unknown) | 64 | 48% |
| Dark, lighted | 3 | 2% |
| Dawn or dusk | 3 | 2% |
| Unknown or not reported | 0 | 0% |
| Day of week | Crashes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Sunday | 23 | 17% |
| Monday | 22 | 16% |
| Tuesday | 11 | 8% |
| Wednesday | 17 | 13% |
| Thursday | 21 | 16% |
| Friday | 13 | 10% |
| Saturday | 27 | 20% |
| Month | Crashes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| January | 13 | 10% |
| February | 9 | 7% |
| March | 8 | 6% |
| April | 15 | 11% |
| May | 12 | 9% |
| June | 7 | 5% |
| July | 9 | 7% |
| August | 11 | 8% |
| September | 13 | 10% |
| October | 12 | 9% |
| November | 14 | 10% |
| December | 11 | 8% |
| Weather | Crashes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Clear | 0 | 0% |
| Cloudy | 0 | 0% |
| Rain | 16 | 12% |
| Snow, sleet or freezing rain | 4 | 3% |
| Fog, smog or smoke | 1 | 1% |
| Severe wind, blowing sand or other | 0 | 0% |
| Unknown or not reported | 113 | 84% |
| Involving | Crashes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| A pedestrian | 14 | 10% |
| A bicyclist or other cyclist | 0 | 0% |
| A speeding-related vehicle | 29 | 22% |
| A driver police reported as drinking | 8 | 6% |
| A large truck (over 10,000 lb) | 72 | 54% |
| A motorcycle | 11 | 8% |
| A hit-and-run vehicle | 3 | 2% |
| A teen driver (15 to 19) | 8 | 6% |
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 I-81, 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. I-81 in Virginia is counted within Virginia 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 Virginia 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 Virginia
- I-64 161
- I-66 27
- I-77 11
- I-85 32
- I-95 175
- I-264 28
- I-295 40
- I-495 28
- I-664 14
- SR-3 39
- SR-5 13
- SR-7 25
- SR-10 27
- SR-16 11
- SR-24 19
- SR-28 20
- SR-30 10
- SR-33 18
- SR-40 22
- SR-41 10
- SR-42 20
- SR-57 16
- SR-122 10
- SR-123 10
- SR-143 24
- SR-150 10
- SR-165 22
- SR-168 17
- SR-208 15
- SR-234 14
In route order, first thirty; the full list is on the Virginia page.