A new study drives the point home: When it comes to operating motor vehicles, Tampa ranks fourth worst out of 39 cities, according to Slate.
The rankings take into account four factors: the America's Worst Drivers Report by AllState Insurance Company, automobile fatality data from the Centers from Disease Control and Prevention, alcohol-related driving deaths and pedestrian strikes. Traffic tickets were not part of the equation because, Slate said, they "have more to do with policing than with the real rate of infractions."
Here's what Slate said about the Cigar City:
Tampa doesn’t do any single thing terribly, but it is consistently poor: 18th worst in years between accidents, fifth in traffic fatalities, tied for 11th in DWI fatalities, and 10th in pedestrian strikes. If the city had managed to get outside the bottom half in any individual category, Tampa residents might have avoided this distinction.
The five worst cities, in order, were:
- Miami
- Philadelphia
- Hialeah
- Tampa
- Baltimore
The safest city to start your engine, according to the survey? Irvine, California.
