Houston dominates as Texas city with highest traffic fatalities during Thanksgiving, data shows

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- The Thanksgiving holiday is the most dangerous time to drive in Texas.

ABC13 partners at the Houston Chronicle are using data analysis from the car insurance savings app, Jerry, to shed some light on what's happening on our roadways.

The country finds this four-day holiday, counting from Wednesday evening to early Monday morning, ranks more deadly than Labor Day, Christmas, and New Year's Eve.

Of course, the size of Texas comes into play with these numbers in a nationwide comparison. Still, it's worth noting that with so many of us on the road to travel, you should consider your driving behavior and that of others.

The data shows that a significant percentage of these crashes have involved intoxicated drivers or excessive speed.

Eyewitness News spoke to Houston TranStar about what they see on the roads as they monitor more than 1,000 cameras on our region's highway system.

"I can't tell you how many times we've seen it where somebody runs out of gas or gets a flat tire, and they pull over into the road shoulder and they get out of their car to assess damage," spokesperson Josh Shideler said. "And then along comes a distracted driver, or an intoxicated driver, and they veer ever so slightly out of the lane that they're traveling in, and they run into the back of that disabled car."

From Dec. 1 to Jan. 1 in 2021, TxDOT counted 433 fatalities in Texas, and almost 23% were DUI or alcohol-related crashes.

For news updates, follow Elissa Rivas on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.