Tennessee fatal crashes in 2009
FARS records 986 deaths in 915 fatal crashes in Tennessee in 2009.
In 2008 it records 1,043 deaths in 958 fatal crashes.
In 2009 the rate is 15.6 deaths for each 100,000 residents in Tennessee and 11.0 in the United States.
By deaths for each 100,000 residents in 2009, Tennessee was number 14 of 51, the 50 states and the District of Columbia.
Deaths in Tennessee fell by 5.5% from 2008 to 2009. In the United States they fell by 9.5%.
In 2009, a driver was recorded as drinking in 28.5% of fatal crashes in Tennessee and 32.7% in the United States.
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 .
This site reads the years before 2015 from one fixed copy. It does not track later revisions of these years. Release dates
2009 beside 2008
| Figure | Tennessee, 2009 | Tennessee, 2008 | United States, 2009 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deaths | 986 | 1,043 | 33,883 |
| Fatal crashes | 915 | 958 | 30,862 |
| Deaths for each 100,000 residents | 15.6 | 16.7 | 11.0 |
| Fatal crashes with a driver recorded as drinking | 261 | 248 | 10,087 |
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. NHTSA's definitions
For the years before 2015 the count is from the FARS element DRUNK_DR. It counts a blood alcohol concentration of .01 g/dL or more. From 2015 the count is from DR_DRINK and counts .001 g/dL or more.
Counties in 2009
Note: a county with no fatal crash in 2009 is not in the table. A count of 1 or 2 is written "1 or 2".
Time of day and weekday
| Time of day | Fatal crashes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Midnight to 6 a.m. | 161 | 17.9% |
| 6 a.m. to noon | 189 | 21.0% |
| Noon to 6 p.m. | 277 | 30.8% |
| 6 p.m. to midnight | 273 | 30.3% |
| Weekday | Fatal crashes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Sunday | 136 | 14.9% |
| Monday | 116 | 12.7% |
| Tuesday | 126 | 13.8% |
| Wednesday | 94 | 10.3% |
| Thursday | 125 | 13.7% |
| Friday | 165 | 18.0% |
| Saturday | 153 | 16.7% |
Note: the tables have the fatal crashes with a known hour or weekday.
Cite this page
Fatal Roads. Tennessee fatal crashes in 2009. https://fatalroads.com/state/tennessee/2009/. Source: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Fatality Analysis Reporting System, FARS 2024 annual file. Data to .
The address of this page does not change.
Source of the figures
Counts: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Fatality Analysis Reporting System, national file of 2009. This site reads the years before 2015 from one fixed copy. It does not track later revisions of these years. Residents: Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program, vintage 2025. Data to .
How the figures are made. Data sources and licences. Corrections.
Questions
Which file does the 2009 page use?
This site reads the years before 2015 from one fixed copy. It does not track later revisions of these years.
What part of the deaths in the United States in 2009 was in Tennessee?
Tennessee had 986 of the 33,883 deaths in the United States in 2009. That is 2.9 percent.
In how many counties of Tennessee did FARS record a fatal crash in 2009?
FARS records one or more fatal crashes in 92 counties of Tennessee in 2009.
How many fatal crashes in Tennessee in 2009 had a driver recorded as drinking?
FARS records a driver as drinking in 261 of 915 fatal crashes in 2009.