Dangerous Intersections In Mississippi

Three of the most dangerous intersections in the state are in Gulfport.

The rankings were based on claims by State Farm policyholders in 1999 and 2000. The company's ``danger index'' includes fender-benders as well as crashes with deaths and injuries. State Farm offered cities on the list $20,000 for safety studies that would improve the dangerous intersections, even though it said driver inattention and distractions like cell phones and reading may be more to blame than road conditions.

One of the three intersections in Gulfport on the list is Courthouse and Pass Road. The reason it's one of the most dangerous? It's one of the busiest cross streets on the coast as are the other two n the list, and where there's a lot of traffic you'll likely find a lot of accidents.

Gulfport showed up three times on the report with its dangerous intersections:

• Number 2 - Highway 49 and Creosote Road
• Number 5 - Highway 49 and Community Road up in Orange Grove
• Number 9 - Courthouse and Pass Road

The intersection of U.S. 51 and Goodman Road in Horn Lake was ranked Wednesday as Mississippi's Number One most dangerous intersection. Southaven and Hattiesburg have two each, according to the review by State Farm Insurance.

``We believe virtually all intersections where many serious crashes occur can be made safer, sometimes through relatively minor, inexpensive adjustments,'' State Farm Regional Vice President Bob West of Birmingham said.

State Farm compiled a ``danger index,'' counting the number of crashes, how many involved injury and the severity of those crashes. The index is adjusted to account for the percentage of vehicles insured by State Farm in areas where the intersections are located. Interstates were not included in the report, which was confined to intersections.

The Ten Most Dangerous Intersections In Mississippi

State Farm's Dangerous Intersection Report