Report: Stretch of William Penn Highway in Salem ranks among state’s deadliest roads

Patrick Varine | Tuesday, April 19, 2022 12:01 a.m.

Tribune-Review

A Honda Crossover damaged in a crash in 2020 at Route 22 and Route 819 in Salem is loaded onto a tow truck.

Four miles of Route 22 just east of Delmont are among the top 10 deadliest stretches of road in the state, according to recent data compiled by the personal finance website MoneyGeek.com.

The 4.3-mile stretch of Route 22 — or William Penn Highway — between Scenic Drive and Hannastown Road in Salem Township was the site of six fatal crashes between 2017 and 2019, the years examined by MoneyGeek.

That places it eighth among the 10 deadliest areas in the state for driving.

The only other road in Western Pennsylvania to make the top 10 is Interstate 79, between Exit 41 (South Strabane) and Exit 45 (Canonsburg). The 2-mile stretch was the site of seven fatal crashes during the studyperiod.

All of the other entries among the top 10 were in Philadelphia or its nearby metro areas. Among them was the deadliest road, five miles of U.S. Route 1 between West Wyoming and Hartel avenues in North Philadelphia, where there were 22 fatal crashes during the three-year span of MoneyGeek’s study.

MoneyGeek is a financial consulting business that offers finance tips and helps people compare things such as car insurance rates.

Out of over 3,300 fatal crashes, over 27% — or more than 900 — involved drunken driving as a significant factor, according to PennDOT.

Speeding was a factor in just under 40% (1,259) of fatal crashes. Distracted driving contributed to just more than 6%.

The month with the most fatal crashes, 319, occurred in October, followed by July (312) and June (300).

The state’s most populous metro areas — Philadelphia and Allegheny counties — are at the top of the list for total fatal crashes, at 277 and 188, respectively.

Allegheny County’s most dangerous road is I-376, with 10 fatal crashes.

Westmoreland County ranks seventh, with 105 fatal crashes, the most (9) occurring along Route 22.

While the MoneyGeek report does not include 2020, PennDOT reported 1,129 traffic fatalities that year, the second-lowest number recorded in Pennsylvania over the past 93 years.

Click here to view the full MoneyGeek report.