Most Dangerous Intersections in El Paso
We will not rank El Paso intersections from intuition. Here is exactly what intersection-level crash data exists, what it can support, and why most published rankings are unreliable.
We do not publish a ranked list of El Paso's most dangerous intersections, because a defensible ranking requires geocoded intersection-level crash records normalized by traffic volume – and until that analysis is completed and verified against TxDOT CRIS and TxDOT/FHWA traffic counts, any list is guesswork. This page explains what data exists, how a valid ranking would be built, and what drivers can act on today.
Ranking deliberately unpublished. Methodology published in full so the analysis can be reproduced and audited when the geocoded extract and exposure data are in hand.
Key findings
- Most published 'most dangerous intersection' lists use raw crash counts with no traffic-volume denominator, which reliably ranks the busiest intersections rather than the riskiest ones.
- Intersection-level analysis depends on location coding quality in CR-3 reports, which is weaker than the severity and date fields.
- A valid ranking needs three inputs: geocoded crash records, a consistent intersection definition with an influence radius, and annual average daily traffic for each approach.
Every finding above is traceable to a dataset listed in Sources, or to transparent analysis described in Methodology.
Why we left this list blank on purpose
Intersection rankings are among the most-shared local-news items in any city, and among the least reliable. The typical version counts crashes at each intersection over some period and sorts descending. That produces a list of the intersections with the most traffic – which is not the same question a driver is asking.
An intersection carrying 60,000 vehicles a day with 40 crashes is safer per trip than one carrying 8,000 vehicles a day with 20 crashes. Without exposure in the denominator, the ranking inverts the answer.
How a defensible El Paso intersection ranking would be built
- 1Pull geocoded crash records for the City of El Paso from TxDOT CRIS across at least three complete, non-provisional calendar years.
- 2Define an intersection influence area – commonly a fixed radius around the intersection centroid – and apply it identically to every candidate.
- 3Filter to intersection and intersection-related crashes using the CRIS classification rather than proximity alone.
- 4Attach annual average daily traffic (AADT) for each approach from TxDOT/FHWA traffic count data.
- 5Compute crashes per million entering vehicles, and separately compute a severity-weighted rate so a fender-bender does not count the same as a fatality.
- 6Publish confidence limits. Low-volume intersections produce unstable rates, and a ranking that ignores that is noise.
No El Paso intersection ranking is published on this site. The table below stays empty until every input above is sourced and verified.
- •Geocoded TxDOT CRIS crash extract, City of El Paso, three or more complete calendar years
- •TxDOT/FHWA AADT counts for each candidate intersection approach
- •Documented intersection influence radius and severity weighting scheme
| Rank | Intersection | Reported crashes | Serious / fatal | Study period | Crashes per million entering vehicles |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| – | Data analysis pending | – | – | – | – |
What El Paso drivers can act on right now
Independent of any ranking, intersection crashes concentrate in a few well-documented movements, and those movements map directly to coverage decisions and to what you do afterward:
- Left turns across oncoming traffic generate the highest-severity intersection collisions and the most contested fault arguments.
- Rear-end collisions at signal changes are the most common intersection crash type and are usually the clearest liability picture.
- Angle (T-bone) crashes are where the difference between minimum liability limits and higher limits shows up most sharply.
- Intersection crashes involving pedestrians are liability events with medical costs that can exceed minimum bodily-injury limits quickly.
If you are in an intersection collision in El Paso, the immediate priorities are documentation and reporting – see our accident guides below.
What this means for El Paso drivers
This section is interpretation from an insurance-education perspective, kept separate from the data above. It does not claim that any statistic causes any premium outcome.
- Raw crash counts identify busy intersections. Rates identify risky ones. Ask which a source used before citing it.
- Any intersection ranking without a stated study period, geography and exposure denominator should be treated as editorial content, not research.
- For drivers, the actionable version of intersection risk is coverage adequacy plus documentation discipline at the scene.
How we analyze the data
- Where the information came from
- See the Sources register below – government datasets are primary.
- Geographic area analyzed
- City of El Paso intersections only. County roads and highway interchanges are analyzed separately because their crash mechanisms differ.
- Time period used
- Minimum three complete, non-provisional calendar years to stabilize rates.
- How incidents were grouped
- CRIS intersection and intersection-related classification within a fixed influence radius applied uniformly.
- How rankings were calculated
- Crashes per million entering vehicles plus a separate severity-weighted rate. Raw counts are reported alongside but never used as the ranking key.
- Last reviewed
- 2026-08-26
Known limitations
- Location coding accuracy in CR-3 reports limits precision at the intersection level.
- AADT counts are not available for every approach and may be modeled rather than measured.
- Low-volume intersections yield statistically unstable rates.
- Recent construction or signal changes can invalidate multi-year comparisons at a specific location.
Sources
Government datasets are primary sources. Any non-government source is identified as secondary at the point of use.
- Texas Department of TransportationCrash Records Information System (CRIS) – Public Query & Crash Statistics
- Reporting period:
- Annual, statewide and by county/city
- Geographic scope:
- Texas, El Paso County and City of El Paso
- Accessed / updated:
- 2026-08
Records are compiled from CR-3 peace-officer crash reports; recent periods remain provisional until reconciled.
View source - Federal Highway AdministrationHighway Statistics Series
- Reporting period:
- Annual
- Geographic scope:
- United States and states
- Accessed / updated:
- 2026-08
- El Paso Metropolitan Planning OrganizationMetropolitan Transportation Plan and traffic/safety planning documents
- Reporting period:
- Multi-year
- Geographic scope:
- El Paso metropolitan planning area
- Accessed / updated:
- 2026-08
- City of El PasoOpen data portal, Police Department and Streets & Maintenance publications
- Reporting period:
- Ongoing
- Geographic scope:
- City of El Paso
- Accessed / updated:
- 2026-08
- TxDOT El Paso DistrictDistrict project, construction and roadway information
- Reporting period:
- Ongoing
- Geographic scope:
- El Paso, Hudspeth and Culberson counties
- Accessed / updated:
- 2026-08
For media & researchers
We do not publish a ranked list of El Paso's most dangerous intersections, because a defensible ranking requires geocoded intersection-level crash records normalized by traffic volume – and until that analysis is completed and verified against TxDOT CRIS and TxDOT/FHWA traffic counts, any list is guesswork. This page explains what data exists, how a valid ranking would be built, and what drivers can act on today.
- Resource:
- Most Dangerous Intersections in El Paso: What the Data Can and Cannot Show
- Permanent link:
- https://elpasoinsuranceauthority.com/el-paso-driver-intelligence/dangerous-intersections
- Methodology:
- Published on this page under “How we analyze the data”.
- Last reviewed:
- 2026-08-26
Journalists, researchers and local organizations may cite this analysis with attribution to El Paso Auto Insurance Authority and a link to this page. For data questions, interviews or the underlying extract notes, see our research and media page.
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