Houston Ranks Among Worst for Delivery Drivers
January 8, 2024
See Why Houston & McAllen, TX, Are Some of the Worst Cities for Delivery Drivers
Delivery driving in Texas is riskier and more dangerous than almost anywhere in the U.S., according to the latest research. That’s because the Lone Star State is home to two of the nation’s worst cities for delivery drivers, with McAllen ranked first and Houston ranked tenth.
Here’s why Texas is notoriously hazardous for delivery drivers, with a closer look at:
- The Top 10 Worst U.S. Cities for Delivery Drivers
- The Top 10 Best U.S. Cities for Delivery Drivers
- What to Do After a Delivery Driver Accident in Texas
This is for you whether you deliver packages or you drive alongside delivery drivers in Austin, Houston, or elsewhere. When you’re motoring through Fort Bend County cities or alongside delivery drivers in neighborhoods like Bee Cave, Lakeway, or The Woodlands, this can assist you in recognizing potential risks.
It can also help you after any delivery driver accident, including Amazon delivery driver crashes, FedEx truck wrecks, UPS truck accidents, and more.
Top 10 Worst U.S. Cities for Delivery Drivers
Looking at the 100 most populated cities in the U.S., a recent study focused on identifying where delivery drivers face the greatest dangers.
To do that, researchers examined several factors, including the following, weighting each factor, based on the degree to which it impacts delivery driver performance and safety:
- Road conditions: The quality of interstates, highways, and other roads was assessed via road maintenance projects and state roadway assessment reports. Weighted heavier than many other factors, road conditions can play a substantial role in delivery driver safety and risks, especially over the holidays when many delivery drivers tend to work much longer shifts and, in turn, spend far more time on the roads.
- Traffic congestion: Traffic analysis reports and civic infrastructure reports were among the resources analyzed to evaluate traffic congestion across different U.S. cities and its role in contributing to the risks delivery drivers face in those areas.
- Weather conditions: Annual inches of rainfall versus average days of sunshine were also part of this assessment. Notably, rainfall was weighted more than sunshine when it came to delivery driver crash risks.
- More: Air quality, population density, number of gas stations, and several other factors were also evaluated as part of this study and ranking process.
After careful analysis and crunching the numbers, researchers scored each city, assigning every one a number from 1 to 100, with lower scores indicating the riskier cities while higher scores highlighted the safer cities for delivery drivers.
Based on that, the top 10 worst cities in the U.S. for delivery drivers were the following (with their scores listed right after and with the Texas cities in bold):
- McAllen, Texas (32.6)
- Atlanta, Georgia (33.0)
- Wilmington, North Carolina (33.8)
- Miami, Florida (34.5)
- Honolulu, Hawaii (34.7)
- New Orleans, Louisiana (35.8)
- Los Angeles, California (35.9)
- Bakersfield, California (38.8)
- Fresno, California (40.7)
- Houston, Texas (40.8)
Aside from California, Texas had the most cities in the top 10 rankings, making it the second most dangerous state for delivery drivers, according to this study.
Top 10 Best U.S. Cities for Delivery Drivers
Also identifying the safest areas for delivery drivers, researchers ranked the “best” cities, with the highest-scored locations making the cut. Remarkably, however, none of the cities on the best list scored higher than 71, suggesting ample opportunity for even the nation’s top cities to improve conditions for delivery drivers.
The cities that made the top 10 best list were:
- Akron, Ohio (70.4)
- Scranton, Pennsylvania (67.4)
- Dayton, Ohio (67.2)
- Greenville, South Carolina (66.2)
- Toledo, Ohio (64.6)
- Harrisburg, Pennsylvania (63.3)
- Cleveland, Ohio (63.0)
- St. Louis, Missouri (61.8)
- Poughkeepsie, New York (61.7)
- Syracuse, New York (61.3)
Critically, when dialing this ranking out to the top 100 best cities for delivery drivers, a few major metros in Texas were on the list, including:
- Austin at spot 50
- Dallas at 74
- El Paso at 84
- San Antonio at 86
While these rankings are intended to help delivery drivers navigate the risks of the roads, the study’s authors also hope that these findings can be used to inform future road improvement projects, new infrastructure, and better choices behind the wheel for all motorists.
What to Do After a Delivery Driver Accident in Texas
No matter how careful you may be in the riskiest or safest cities for delivery drivers, accidents can happen.
If you’re ever in a delivery driver crash, it’s generally in your best interests to take as many of the following steps as possible after the wreck:
- Move to a safe spot and call the police immediately. If you’re able and without putting yourself in danger, try to help any other victims who may need it. Also, do not leave the scene.
- Exchange driver, vehicle, and insurance info with others in the wreck. Do not apologize or say “sorry” as you do this. Also, don’t admit fault at any point, even if you think you may have contributed to the crash. You never know what other parties were doing, so don’t automatically take the blame or give at-fault parties an easy out when it comes to liability.
- Gather items from the scene. This can mean photos and videos of the wreckage, debris from the crash, and names and contact info from any available eyewitnesses.
- Report the accident to your insurance company. Don’t give an official statement if you’re not ready, and don’t let the insurance adjuster try to pressure you into making this statement. Also, don’t forget that you can talk to a lawyer before you provide a recorded statement to an insurance company.
- Get help from a couple of key professionals. This means medical attention for your injuries. It can also mean talking to a delivery driver accident lawyer to find out if you have a case and, if so, how to proceed.
Remember, you don’t have to recover from an Amazon delivery driver accident or any other delivery driver wreck alone — and it’s rarely a bad idea to get answers and more information about your rights and legal options.