Where bike crashes happen

Outside city limits, 71% of bike crashes were within 40 m of a junction: nearly all bike crashes in police reports involve a vehicle, and most of those are at junctions and driveways.

In a bend

8%

In a bend: 480 crashes

On a straight

21%

On a straight: 1,221 crashes

At or near a junction

71%

At or near a junction: 4,085 crashes

Junction: another road meets it within 40 m of where the crash was placed. Bend: tighter than a 100 m radius within 75 m.

CCRS gives the cyclist's direction, and USGS elevation the road's rise or fall there, so each crash on a grade of 3% or more can be put going up or coming down. The same riders go both ways. Outside city limits, 73% of these crashes were coming down, and in bends 84%. Cyclists also spend far longer on the way up, so per minute on the road the gap is wider still.

Crashes outside city limits with a known direction, not on a bridge or in a tunnel; grade over 100 m either side.

On the 288 climbs with bike crashes along them, 334 crashes were coming down and 111 going up, where the direction is known. Inside city limits too. A count, not a rating: popular climbs see more riders.

1. 1Hearst Avenue from Sixth Street16 coming down, 1 going up · 28 bike crashes along it
2. 2Montebello Road from Stevens Canyon Road10 coming down, 1 going up · 15 bike crashes along it
3. 3Glendora Mountain Road from Elmgrove Drive9 coming down, 1 going up · 11 bike crashes along it, 1 fatal
4. 4Marin Avenue from Talbot Avenue6 coming down, 1 going up · 14 bike crashes along it
5. 5Page Mill Road from Hanover Street6 coming down, 0 going up · 12 bike crashes along it
6. 6Euclid Avenue from Hearst Avenue6 coming down, 1 going up · 11 bike crashes along it
7. 7Spruce Street from Hearst Avenue6 coming down, 0 going up · 7 bike crashes along it
8. 8Woodside Road from Santiago Avenue5 coming down, 1 going up · 9 bike crashes along it
9. 9Kings Mountain Road5 coming down, 0 going up · 8 bike crashes along it
10. 10Detective Jeremiah MacKay Memorial Highway from East Lugonia Avenue5 coming down, 1 going up · 7 bike crashes along it, 1 fatal
11. 11Gibraltar Road from Mountain Drive5 coming down, 0 going up · 7 bike crashes along it
12. 12North Lake Avenue from East Maple Street5 coming down, 0 going up · 5 bike crashes along it
13. 13Tunnel Road from Ashby Avenue4 coming down, 3 going up · 15 bike crashes along it
14. 14Conzelman Road from 2nd Street4 coming down, 2 going up · 10 bike crashes along it
15. 15Ralston Avenue from Old County Road4 coming down, 1 going up · 10 bike crashes along it

Stretches of road outside city limits with the most reported bike crashes, mostly busy suburban roads in unincorporated areas. Busy roads lead because more people use them: a count, not a ranking of risk.

1. 1Soquel Drive near Capitola40 crashes (88% at junctions), 1 fatal · on the map
2. 2Florin Road near Sacramento35 crashes (94% at junctions), 1 fatal · on the map
3. 3Watt Avenue near Sacramento26 crashes (100% at junctions), 0 fatal · on the map
4. 4Madison Avenue near Citrus Heights25 crashes (92% at junctions), 1 fatal · on the map
5. 5Whittier Boulevard near Commerce21 crashes (95% at junctions), 0 fatal · on the map
6. 6Roseville Road near Citrus Heights20 crashes (50% at junctions), 3 fatal · on the map
7. 7Compton Avenue near Los Angeles17 crashes (94% at junctions), 0 fatal · on the map
8. 8Montebello Road near Cupertino15 crashes (20% at junctions), 0 fatal · on the map
9. 9Elkhorn Boulevard near Sacramento15 crashes (60% at junctions), 1 fatal · on the map
10. 10Cañada Road near San Carlos15 crashes (0% at junctions), 2 fatal · on the map
11. 11Campus Drive near Palo Alto15 crashes (87% at junctions), 0 fatal · on the map
12. 12Marconi Avenue near Sacramento15 crashes (93% at junctions), 0 fatal · on the map
13. 13Pacific Coast Highway (SR-1) near Malibu14 crashes (14% at junctions), 1 fatal · on the map
14. 14Howe Avenue near Sacramento14 crashes (86% at junctions), 2 fatal · on the map
15. 15Stockton Boulevard near Sacramento14 crashes (100% at junctions), 0 fatal · on the map

Are bike crashes more common going downhill?

Outside city limits, 365 bike crashes on a grade were coming down and 137 going up, although the same riders go both ways and spend longer climbing.

Where do bike crashes happen outside cities?

71% were within 40 m of a junction, 21% on straights and 8% in bends. Police reports nearly always involve a vehicle; falls with no vehicle rarely reach them.

Where does this data come from?

Police crash reports in the California Crash Reporting System (CCRS) on data.ca.gov, 2021–2025, with a bicyclist involved and a map location, placed on OpenStreetMap roads; grades from USGS 3DEP elevation; climbs from our climb finder.