King County, Washington: fatal crash statistics

Counties of Washington by year (CSV)Cite this page

FARS records 152 deaths in 140 fatal crashes in King County in 2024.

FARS records 1,260 deaths in 1,182 fatal crashes in the county from 2015 to 2024.

From 2015 to 2024 the rate is 5.6 deaths for each 100,000 residents in a year.

The rate of Washington in the same years is 8.2.

By deaths from 2015 to 2024, King County was number 1 of 39 counties of Washington.

Deaths in King County rose by 33.9% between the ten years 2005 to 2014 (941) and the ten years 2015 to 2024 (1,260).

In the counties of Washington the deaths rose by 22.3% between the same years.

From 2015 to 2024, 11.2% of the fatal crashes in King County with a known setting were rural, against 41.9% in Washington.

To qualify as a FARS case, the crash had to involve a motor vehicle traveling on a trafficway customarily open to the public and must have resulted in the death of a motorist or a non-motorist within 30 days of the crash.
The set of first files, known as the Annual Report File (ARF), is released following the crash year. The ARF is replaced about a year later with a final file, which contains additional cases or updates to cases that had become available after the ARF was released.
NHTSA's words. Source: NHTSA, Fatality Analysis Reporting System Analytical User's Manual, 1975-2024 (DOT HS 813 794, April 2026), copied on 2 Oct 2026.

This page rests on the FARS 2024 annual file. NHTSA released it on 1 Apr 2026. NHTSA can revise the counts in the final file. Release dates

Figure 1.Deaths in King County by year, 2015 to 2024

109

100

111

115

107

110

137

151

168

152

Table 1 has the numbers. Go to the table

Since the last update: no figure of this county has a change on record.

Deaths and fatal crashes by year

Table 1.King County: deaths and fatal crashes by year, 2015 to 2024
Year	Deaths	Fatal crashes	Crashes with a driver recorded as drinking
2024	152	140	27
2023	168	151	42
2022	151	146	41
2021	137	126	33
2020	110	107	29
2019	107	105	30
2018	115	101	31
2017	111	110	40
2016	100	96	29
2015	109	100	34
2015 to 2024	1,260	1,182	336

Each year from 1975

Figure 2.Deaths in King County by year, 1975 to 2024

Tallest column: 242 (1979)2024: 152

The columns with a stronger shade are the years 2015 to 2024.

Table 2.King County: deaths and fatal crashes by year, 1975 to 2024
Year	Deaths	Fatal crashes
2024	152	140
2023	168	151
2022	151	146
2021	137	126
2020	110	107
2019	107	105
2018	115	101
2017	111	110
2016	100	96
2015	109	100
2014	83	77
2013	80	77
2012	90	85
2011	74	72
2010	87	78
2009	77	71
2008	96	90
2007	91	90
2006	133	120
2005	130	122
2004	116	102
2003	105	98
2002	106	96
2001	122	107
2000	120	107
1999	98	91
1998	115	107
1997	125	114
1996	131	120
1995	116	111
1994	113	108
1993	115	96
1992	123	115
1991	123	113
1990	170	152
1989	146	140
1988	170	157
1987	151	143
1986	161	153
1985	157	143
1984	143	139
1983	144	136
1982	145	134
1981	191	178
1980	222	203
1979	242	219
1978	232	215
1977	175	155
1976	146	139
1975	170	151

Note: a count of 1 or 2 is written "1 or 2". A death is in FARS when it occurs in 30 days or less after the crash.

Rate for each 100,000 residents

Table 3.King County beside Washington and the United States: deaths for each 100,000 residents
Period	King County	Washington	United States
2024	6.6	9.2	11.5
2015 to 2024, in a year	5.6	8.2	11.8

Note: the rate divides the deaths in the county by its residents. Persons who do not live in the county are in the deaths, not in the residents.

Population: Census Bureau estimates, vintage 2025. King County had 2,317,959 residents in 2024.

Factors that NHTSA records

Table 4.King County: counts by recorded factor, 2015 to 2024
Factor	Count	Counted among	Share	Share in Washington
A driver recorded as drinkingof 1,182 fatal crashes	336	1,182 fatal crashes	28.4%	31.1%
A speeding-related driverof 1,182 fatal crashes	362	1,182 fatal crashes	30.6%	31.1%
No restraint usedof 520 occupant deaths with restraint use known	217	520 occupant deathswith restraint use known	41.7%	40.8%
Pedestriansof 1,260 deaths	365	1,260 deaths	29.0%	18.4%
Bicyclistsof 1,260 deaths	41	1,260 deaths	3.3%	2.2%
Motorcyclistsof 1,260 deaths	182	1,260 deaths	14.4%	15.7%
On a rural roadof 1,177 fatal crashes with the condition reported	132	1,177 fatal crasheswith the condition reported	11.2%	41.9%
In the darkof 1,174 fatal crashes with the condition reported	652	1,174 fatal crasheswith the condition reported	55.5%	47.7%

Note: FARS records a driver as drinking when police reported alcohol involvement or a test of the driver was positive for alcohol. It is not NHTSA's alcohol-impaired measure, which uses a blood alcohol concentration of .08 g/dL or higher. One crash can be in two or more rows. NHTSA's definitions

Note that alcohol data is often missing. For that reason, this data element may under-count the actual number of drinking drivers.

NHTSA's words. Source: NHTSA, Fatality Analysis Reporting System Analytical User's Manual, 1975-2024 (DOT HS 813 794, April 2026), copied on 2 Oct 2026.

Weekday, time and road class

Table 5.King County: fatal crashes by weekday and time of day, 2015 to 2024
Weekday	Midnight to 6 a.m.	6 a.m. to noon	Noon to 6 p.m.	6 p.m. to midnight	All
Sunday	56	20	25	56	157
Monday	33	39	41	52	165
Tuesday	32	22	41	49	144
Wednesday	29	40	42	58	169
Thursday	31	20	45	56	152
Friday	45	26	51	70	192
Saturday	70	25	46	60	201
All days	296	192	291	401	1,180

Note: a cell with a stronger shade has a larger count. The table has the fatal crashes with a known hour and weekday.

Table 6.King County: fatal crashes by road function class, 2015 to 2024
Road function class	Fatal crashes	Share	Share in Washington
Interstate	185	15.7%	12.4%
Other freeways and expressways	77	6.5%	6.1%
Other principal arterial	479	40.7%	30.8%
Minor arterial	219	18.6%	19.2%
Major collector	103	8.8%	18.2%
Minor collector	13	1.1%	3.8%
Local	101	8.6%	9.5%
Not reported	5	n/a	n/a

Note: the classes are those of the Federal Highway Administration. The shares are of the crashes with a reported class. Road function classes

Light condition and weather

Table 7.King County: fatal crashes by light condition, 2015 to 2024
Light condition	Fatal crashes
Daylight	474
Dark, not lighted	155
Dark, lighted	486
Dawn	15
Dusk	33
Dark, lighting unknown	11
Other or unknown	8

Table 8.King County: fatal crashes by weather, 2015 to 2024
Weather	Fatal crashes
Clear	713
Cloudy	241
Rain	191
Snow, sleet or freezing rain	7
Fog, smog or smoke	17
Crosswinds or blowing sand/snow	3
Other or not reported	10

Routes in the county

Table 9.Signed routes in King County that have a page: fatal crashes, 2015 to 2024
Route	Type	In King	In all of Washington
Interstate 5	Interstate	117	390
Interstate 90	Interstate	42	161
Interstate 405	Interstate	26	31
State Route 18	State highway	35	35
State Route 99	State highway	95	138
State Route 161	State highway	3	22
State Route 167	State highway	27	48
State Route 169	State highway	22	22
State Route 509	State highway	18	36
State Route 516	State highway	23	23
State Route 522	State highway	17	21
US Route 2	US highway	8	117

Note: the table has each route with a page that has a fatal crash in the county, in name order. Local streets and county roads have no page. Their crashes are in the county totals. All routes in Washington

Adjacent counties

These lists are for navigation. They are in name order.

Figure 3.King County on the county map of Washington

Deaths for each 100,000 residents in a year, 2015 to 2024

Fewer than 1018 counties
10 to 14.98 counties
15 to 19.94 counties
20 to 29.94 counties
30 or more5 counties
King County: 5.6

The limits of the classes are the same for every state. A county with few residents can show a high rate from few deaths. A class is not a judgement of a county. The full map and the table of counties of Washington

Table 10.Counties that share a boundary line with King County
County	State	Deaths, 2024	Deaths, 2015 to 2024	For each 100,000 residents in a year
Chelan County	Washington	7	71	9.1
Kitsap County	Washington	18	177	6.5
Kittitas County	Washington	9	106	22.8
Pierce County	Washington	102	794	8.8
Snohomish County	Washington	64	474	5.8
Yakima County	Washington	35	405	16.0

Source of the list: Census Bureau county adjacency file, 2026 edition.

Counties of similar population

These counties of Washington have a population nearest to that of King County. The list is for navigation and is in name order. The number is the deaths from 2015 to 2024.

Official channels

NHTSA Fatality and Injury Reporting System Tool (FIRST)NHTSA's query tool for FARS counts.
NHTSA FARS EncyclopediaNHTSA's tables of FARS data.
Washington Traffic Safety CommissionThe highway safety office of Washington.

These links go to the sites of the agencies. They were checked on 2 Oct 2026.

Cite this page

Fatal Roads. King County, Washington: fatal crash statistics. https://fatalroads.com/county/wa/king/. Source: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Fatality Analysis Reporting System, FARS 2024 annual file. Data to 31 Dec 2024.

The address of this page does not change.

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Source of the figures

Counts: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Fatality Analysis Reporting System, national files of 1975 to 2024. The factors use the vehicle and person files from 2015. Residents: Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program, vintage 2025. Map: Census Bureau cartographic boundary file, 2021 edition. Data to 31 Dec 2024. The figures are totals. No page of this site is about one crash or one person.

How the figures are made. Data sources and licences. Corrections.

Questions

How many deaths did FARS record in King in the ten years before 2015?

FARS records 941 deaths in King County from 2005 to 2014. It records 1,260 deaths from 2015 to 2024.

What was the rate of King in 2024?

The rate of King County in 2024 was 6.6 deaths for each 100,000 residents. The rate of Washington was 9.2. The rate of the United States was 11.5.

How many fatal crashes in King had a driver recorded as drinking?

FARS records a driver as drinking in 336 of 1,182 fatal crashes from 2015 to 2024. This count is not NHTSA's alcohol-impaired measure. NHTSA says that alcohol data is often missing, so the count may be too low.

How many fatal crashes did FARS record on signed routes in King?

12 signed routes in the county have a page. FARS records 433 fatal crashes on them in the county from 2015 to 2024. The table of routes on this page gives the count for each route.