New data shows a fatal accident was reported almost every day in October

LAS VEGAS (KSNV) — Data shows that since the beginning of October, one person has died in a fatal accident in Las Vegas almost every day.

The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department reported 11 deaths in the first 14 days of the month, the latest occurring on Monday, when aMotorcyclist crashed into SUV in the northwest valley of Rancho Dr. near Torrey Pines Dr.

The death was the 123rd traffic-related death in Metro’s jurisdiction so far in 2024.

Traffic statistics on Metro’s website show 118 deaths at the same time last year as of Friday, Oct. 11. The current trend in fatal crashes is on track to either match or exceed the approximately 160 fatalities on Metro roads last year.

Metro Police continue to release videos of the crashes and ask the community to slow down. Statistics show that excessive speed is a major factor in most accidents. There were 31 cases on Friday compared to 13 last year.

Excessive speed by the 32-year-old driver of the motorcycle is a suspected cause of Monday’s accident, according to Metro Police.

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The traffic unit continues to work to reduce fatalities by reintroducing the DUI Strike Team in the spring and launching the Fatal Traffic Accidents Reduction Plan earlier this year.

“We are assigning more of our traffic officers to the hours and days when these collisions occur,” said Sgt. Richard Rundell of the Fatal Detail Team in an interview in September. “I don’t have all the stats on whether it’s having a big impact or not, but I can say we’ve seen an increase in DUI arrests. We have seen an increase in citations.”

Metro Police report issuing more than 107,000 traffic citations between Feb. 1 and Sept. 24, including nearly 41,000 citations for speeding violations.

The number of arrests for driving under the influence is up more than 5 percent, with 4,780 in 2024 compared to 4,533 in 2023. Fatal drunk driving cases are also up, at 48 this year compared to 54 last year declined.