In a state full of winter driving months, you’d expect to see a high number of incidents on the roads of Wisconsin. However, drivers in the Badger state are seasoned veterans when it comes to driving in winter conditions. NHTSA fatality data has Wisconsin drivers below the national average (11.40) in road fatalities with 10.58 per 100,000 people in 2017. Drivers are generally pretty safe in the state.
According to QuoteWizard best and worst driver studies Wisconsin typically ranks near the middle of the pack in overall driver quality. However, that ranking slipped to 17th worst driving state in 2018. Even Milwaukee and Madison rate in the top half of driver quality in the nation. With an above average quality driver profile in the state, we here at QuoteWizard wanted to find where the best and worst drivers in the state of Wisconsin are.
To determine overall driver quality in Wisconsin, we ranked the 50 largest cities in the state. We analyzed over 49,000 insurance quotes from Wisconsin drivers using QuoteWizard.com and ranked cities by the highest rate of incidents. Incidents include accidents, speeding tickets, DUIs, and citations.
Worst driving cities in Wisconsin
| Rank (worst) | City |
|---|---|
| 1 | Mount Pleasant |
| 2 | Racine |
| 3 | Franklin |
| 4 | Menomonee Falls |
| 5 | Germantown |
| 6 | Caledonia |
| 7 | Mequon |
| 8 | Menomonie |
| 9 | Oconomowoc |
| 10 | Stevens Point |
| 11 | Oshkosh |
| 12 | Fond du Lac |
| 13 | Pleasant Prairie |
| 14 | Kenosha |
| 15 | La Crosse |
| 16 | Waukesha |
| 17 | Janesville |
| 18 | Wausau |
| 19 | Muskego |
| 20 | West Allis |
| 21 | South Milwaukee |
| 22 | Fitchburg |
| 23 | New Berlin |
| 24 | Madison |
| 25 | Appleton |
Mount Pleasant
Right along busy I-94, Mount Pleasant is in a high traffic spot that makes it a perfect location for incidents. Folks traveling from Milwaukee to Chicago are bound to find themselves in heavy traffic in Mount Pleasant. The combination of traffic and bad drivers in Mount Pleasant puts the city on top as the worst drivers in the state. Luckily, Racine county only had 5.61 road fatalities per 100,000 people in 2017. Well below the state average of 10.58 per 100,000 people.
Racine
Sure enough, right next door to the worst driving city is the second worst drivers in Wisconsin. Racine is tucked away on the shores of Lake Michigan away from all the traffic that Mount Pleasant deals with. However, given the proximity to Mount Pleasant I’m willing to believe it’s really the drivers in both cities that are dragging down their ranking. Again, the good news is that Racine county does have a below average road fatality rate.
Franklin
Let’s make it three-for-three in worst driving cities all bordering each other. Franklin sits just one town northwest of Mount Pleasant. I’d give Franklin and Mount Pleasant the benefit of the doubt given their traffic levels. But, with the top three worst driving cities all next to each other, it must be something in the water. Wilwaukee county did have 9.03 road fatalities per 100,000 drivers in 2017.
Best driving Cities in Wisconsin
| Rank (Best) | City |
|---|---|
| 1 | Superior |
| 2 | Onalaska |
| 3 | Middleton |
| 4 | Howard |
| 5 | Cudahy |
| 6 | Ashwaubenon |
| 7 | Green Bay |
| 8 | Beloit |
| 9 | De Pere |
| 10 | Oak Creek |
| 11 | Wisconsin Rapids |
| 12 | Menasha |
| 13 | Marshfield |
| 14 | Milwaukee |
| 15 | Manitowoc |
| 16 | Wauwatosa |
| 17 | West Bend |
| 18 | Sheboygan |
| 19 | Sun Prairie |
| 20 | Eau Claire |
| 21 | Watertown |
| 22 | Brookfield |
| 23 | Greenfield |
| 24 | Fox Crossing |
| 25 | Neenah |
Superior
Tucked away in the very corner of the state, Superior takes the top spot as the best drivers. Rightfully so, the city sitting on its namesake lake is so far away from any traffic areas avoiding road incidents. Douglas county accounted for 9.24 road fatalities per 100,000 people in 2017.
Onalaska
Another city completely out of the way from the busy city traffic, Onalaska drivers have the luxury of quiet roads. That’s not to take anything away from their quality of driving. Folks in Onalaska must practice their safe driving habits daily. La Crosse county had 10.15 road fatalities per 100,000 people in 2017.
Middleton
Close, but not too close to the busy streets of Madison is the third best driving city in the state. Middleton does have the advantage of being out of the way of one of the rowdiest college party towns in the country. Still, the drivers of Middleton deserve credit for their quality road skills. Dane county had 5.97 road fatalities per 100,000 people in 2017.
Methodology
The QuoteWizard research team evaluated driver quality from the 50 largest cities in Wisconsin by population. We analyzed 2018 data of over 49,000 insurance quotes from Wisconsin drivers using QuoteWizard to find the rate of overall incidents in each city. Incidents include accidents, speeding tickets, DUIs, and citations.
References:
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