It’s the crash, crashiest time of the year. 

October not only marks the beginning of the fall season and cooler weather in Maricopa but also the peak of cars — and crashes — on the road as snowbirds return to the metro. 

Arizona Department of Transportation data already shows Maricopa had more car crashes than five entire Arizona counties last year, and that’s not including State Route 347, the crash-prone, one-way ticket to the city by car. 

The Maricopa Association of Governments’ 2022 crash data report shows October is the month when the MAG region — which includes Maricopa — sees the most crashes, injuries and fatalities.  

MAG data shows in October 2022 there were 8,147 crashes, 3,692 injuries and 77 fatalities. 

Meanwhile, in July 2022 — the dead of summer when all the snowbirds are home to roost — saw the lowest numbers with 6,105 crashes, 2,517 injuries and 50 fatalities.  

That is a 33% increase in crashes from summer to fall.  

A study released last week by the Sacramento, Calif-based law firm Auto Accident Team ranked the worst metro areas for fall driving from 2013 to 2022. Ranked on that list was Tucson at No. 2 and the Phoenix metro, which included Pinal County, at No. 6. 

Tucson saw a 16.5% increase with 278 fatal crashes during those 10 summers and 324 fatal crashes in the fall. Phoenix saw a 12.4% tick with 1,166 fatal crashes in the summers and 1,311 fatal crashes in the autumns. 

That means on average, there was a 14.5% hike in crashes from summer to fall in the Phoenix-Tucson corridor in which Maricopa exists. Only Raleigh, N.C., outranked an Arizona city in that study. 

“We wanted to determine which areas of America were the worst at handling seasonal change,” said Leo Danconia, CEO of Auto Accident Team. “Fall driving can always be tricky compared to summer. The weather gets colder … and the days get shorter. These all make collisions on the road more likely.” 

InMaricopa contacted the city to see how many seasonal residents spend cool months in Maricopa, but the city does not track that information.  

“Maricopa’s population used to fluctuate with the seasons, however, that trend has become less visible in recent years,” said Monica Williams, spokesperson for the city. “More residents are choosing to live here year-round.”  

The Canada Arizona Business Council estimates about 100,000 Canadian snowbirds visit the Grand Canyon State each year.  

What does the city do to manage the return of the snowbirds — and their cars? 

“The city takes a holistic approach to traffic planning throughout the year,” Williams said.

An important part of that year-round approach is a contract between the city and a traffic engineering firm that monitors its traffic signals 24/7 on John Wayne Parkway. 

 “Our systems actually have capability to be automated based on data,” said Williams. “However, the city does not currently rely on full automation due to its challenges.”  

An example of those challenges, Williams noted, is that an automated system could adjust the timing of lights multiple times throughout the day and that could lead to safety issues as drivers are used to consistent patterns and may not anticipate the sudden changes. 

“This firm works alongside the automation features, making adjustments at optimal times to prevent traffic disruptions and ensure safety,” Williams said.  

For intersections off the main strip, the city is working to complete fiber optic connections that would allow engineers to connect to cameras and control the traffic signals remotely.