What Days & Times Are the Most Dangerous to Drive in Maine?

Most of us try our best to be cautious drivers.

After all, none of us have the time to deal with a fender-bender, and we never want to be responsible for a serious crash.

Because we want to avoid crashes, we follow the speed limit (most of the time), always use our blinker before turning or changing lanes, and pay attention to road signs.  Of course, we aren't the only ones on the road.  Sometimes the fault is with another driver.  And sometimes, lighting and other conditions factor into the situation.

How many crashes have there been in Maine in the last decade?

Using the Maine DOT website, we were able to pull Maine crash records from January 2015 through April 2024.

During that time, there were just under 312,000 crashes statewide.  Most of them were fender benders and did not result in any apparent injuries.  About 6,500 did result in serious injury, and sadly, just over 1,500 resulted in at least one fatality.

What are the most dangerous days and times to be on the road in Maine?

The data shows that Friday is the day you are most likely to get into a crash.  Just over 52,000 of the reported crashes took place on a Friday.  It makes sense, though.  On Fridays, you have a mixture of people who are driving to work & school, people who are travel into Maine for the weekend, and people who are kicking off their weekend by having a few drinks.

With about 48,000 crashes happening on a Thursday, it was the second most dangerous day to be on the road.  Many crashes probably occur on Thursdays because of situations similar to Fridays.  People are working and going to school, but you also have a number of people who are starting their weekend early.

Tuesdays saw the 3rd most crashes, Mondays were in 4th place, Wednesdays were in 5th place, and Saturdays were in 6th place.  Sundays saw the fewest number of crashes.  During the 2015 to 2024 timeframe, there were only 32,000 crashes.

The Maine DOT data showed that the most dangerous times to be on the road were during typical commuting hours, with the drive home more dangerous than the drive to work.  About 43,000 crashes happened between 6 AM and 9 AM, and there were about 66,000 crashes between 4 PM and 7 PM.

Even though most of the crashes took place during commute times, there were a number of crashes that happened late at night.  Between 10 PM and 2 AM, there were about 17,000 crashes.

You can check out more statistics here.

Have you ever been involved in a serious crash?  What happened?  Tell us your story by sending a message to us through our app.