Cape named one of safest places to drive
In the past few years, Cape Coral has been named of the best places to live and retire to. Now, it’s earned another positive recognition.
Of the top 200 metropolitan areas, Allstate Insurance Com-pany named Cape Coral one of the safest places to drive in America in its recent America’s Best Drivers report.
Cape Coral finished 15th this year, its highest ranking ever, after being ranked 40th last year, and has traditionally been lauded as having among the safest drivers in Florida, according to the report that has been published annually since 2005.
Local agents did not comment, as per company policy. Cathy Mayo, media relations specialist at Allstate, said the company compiles collision data to determine the likelihood of getting into an accident.
“We saw that Cape Coral is the safest city in Florida and 15th in the country. Cape drivers get into an accident once every 11.8 years, which is a 1.2 year improvement over last year,” Mayo said.
Cape Coral has ranked first seven times, and second the other three years, squeezed out the other years by Port St. Lucie twice and Tallahassee once, according to the report, which bases its rankings on numerous factors, such as population, density and weather conditions.
Cape Coral ranked 21st in population, 38th in city density and 11th in weather. It was the only city in Florida to rank in the top 25.
Hialeah, near Miami, ranked among the worst.
Mayo said the report isn’t used to determine insurance rates, although the company does reward safe drivers with discounts.
“There are other factors such as the type of car, driving record, coverage, where they live, so there are many factors,” Mayo said. “But if they’re driving safe, they might qualify for discounts.”
Mayo said other factors could include traffic enforcement, the city’s layout and its infrastructure.
Cape Coral, for example, has no interstate highway, and the maximum speed limit is 55 mph, which only takes effect on three of its roads; Burnt Store Road, Veterans Parkway and Pine Island Road.
Fort Collins, Colo. was ranked as having the safest drivers, while Worcester, Mass. ranked the worst along with many other northeastern cities, which had their ratings driven down by weather and its dense population.
No matter where you live, Mayo said there is one moral to be taken from the report.
“Our message is that no matter where you live, it’s important to practice safe driving habits,” Mayo said.