Nanaimo is home to the most car accident-prone intersection on Vancouver Island, with Duncan and Saanich following not too far behind, according to latest data from the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (ICBC).
ICBC’s top 10 crashes at intersections list, updated in late November, compiles all vehicle accident data from across the Island and found that the Harbour City’s Aulds Road at the Island Highway saw the most collisions in 2021 — 74, to be exact.
The Trans-Canada Highway at Trunk Road in Duncan, meanwhile, claimed the second spot with 58 crashes, as Bowen Road at the Island Highway in Nanaimo got third with 56 accidents, followed by Aulds Road at Nanaimo Parkway in Lantzville at 54.
In Saanich, Blanshard Street at Saanich Road accounted for the most crashes in that municipality, with 53 last year — just one more than nearby Boleskine Road at Douglas Street, which saw 52 during the same time period.
Const. Markus Anastasiades, media relations officer with Saanich Police, says the most serious collisions happen at intersections, so he’s reminding all road users to pay extra attention when crossing them.
In October, a child suffered non-life-threatening injuries after being struck by a driver in a crosswalk on Shelbourne Street at San Juan Avenue, near Mount Douglas Park.
“These are busy intersections at almost all times during the day in Saanich,” Anastasiades told CHEK News. “Avoiding distractions while driving, walking or cycling will help you react quickly if needed. Expect the unexpected.”
(ICBC)
Across the Island in 2021, approximately 9,900 car crashes at intersections left 5,300 people injured, according to ICBC. It says 14 people, nearly double the eight recorded the year before, died in those collisions.
Meanwhile, Langford also made the notorious crashes at intersections list, as Millstream Road at the Trans-Canada Highway claimed seventh with 52 collisions in 2021, a few more than Saanich’s McKenzie Avenue at Quadra Street, which saw 49.
Two other Nanaimo intersections, Jingle Pot Road at Nanaimo Parkway and Enterprise Street at Island Highway, culminated the list, seeing 47 and 46 crashes, respectively.
(ICBC)
Ethan Morneau
