PROTECT THE YOUTH

Texas is the 2nd most dangerous state for young drivers, according to new report

Driving in Texas doesn't come without danger.

Make sure those seatbelts are fastened, folks. A new analysis has revealed just how dangerous driving can be for the younger generation in Texas.

Young drivers have made up 19 percent of all driver fatalities in the state between 2017 and 2021, according to the study commissioned by personal injury lawyer John Fitch. A full 2,292 young driver fatalities were recorded out of a total number of 12,028, which is the highest number in the nation.

Certain Texas highways have been named some of the most dangerous in the country, and Houston is on another list of the most dangerous cities for drivers in general.

Rhode Island took the No. 1 spot for the most dangerous state for young drivers, with 19.81 percent of driver fatalities being between 16 and 24-years-old. There were 41 young driver deaths out of a total 207 in Rhode Island between 2017 and 2021.

Rounding out the top five most dangerous states for young drivers is Utah (No. 3) with 163 young driver deaths out of a total 860 between the same five year period; California (No. 4) with 1,993 young driver deaths out of 10,578; and Delaware (No. 5) with 68 out of 364 fatalities being young drivers.

Fitch shared his thoughts on the study's findings, calling the trend a "concerning pattern of young road user involvement in fatal road accidents."

"While it is highly unlikely that we will ever eliminate all driver fatalities, it is important that we identify what certain states are doing differently that could be accounting for these varying rates of young driver deaths," Fitch said. "If larger states, such as Texas, achieved similar fatality rates to West Virginia, which ranked bottom, there would have been 805 fewer young driver deaths in the state over the same five-year period, which is quite a staggering statistic."

The top 10 most dangerous states for young drivers are:

No. 1 – Rhode Island
No. 2 – Texas
No. 3 – Utah
No. 4 – California
No. 5 – Delaware
No. 6 – Nebraska
No. 7 – Massachusetts
No. 8 – Idaho
No. 9 – Montana
No. 10 – Maryland

The bottom five states on the list, making them the safest for young drivers, are Minnesota (No. 46), Alaska (No. 47), Maine (No. 48), Oregon (No. 49), and West Virginia (No. 50). The young driver fatality rates are all under 13.6 percent, with West Virginia's at 12.36 percent.

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gas price news

This is how much Texas gas prices have fallen since May 2026

Close-Up of Woman Paying For Gas With Credit Card

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Millions of Americans will be traveling for the Fourth of July weekend.

Houstonians planning to travel over the holiday weekend will be relieved to know Texas is among the top 10 states with the biggest dips in gas prices since May.

A new SmartAsset study analyzed the changes in average gas prices across all 50 states between May 21 and June 28, 2026, and used the data to determine each state's "gas-price burden" — meaning the cost of filling a 15-gallon tank represented as the share of the estimated median weekly household income.

Texas had the fifth highest surge in gas prices in April, and prices across the U.S. continued soaring until reaching an annual peak in late May. On May 21, regular gas prices peaked at $4.09 in Texas, and the latest data has revealed statewide gas prices have dipped nearly 24 percent since then.

Now as of June 29, Texas gas prices have eased by 79 cents and now stand at $3.30 per gallon. Unfortunately, prices have not dwindled as much in Harris County. Many Houston residents will be seeing gas prices at around $3.38 on average.

Based on a Texas household's median weekly income of $1,617, the cost of filling up a 15-gallon tank of gas eats up 3.1 percent those earnings, the report added. That means Texas' gas-price burden is the 9th lowest in the U.S.

Texas has the second-cheapest price for a gallon of gas in the U.S. (behind Indiana) and it ranks 6th in the national comparison of states with the biggest gas price declines since May.

Colorado led the nation with the biggest dip in the price of gas since May, with prices declining by 29.2 percent. Gas now costs $3.89 per gallon, down from $4.77.

Declining gas prices are a welcome relief for commuters and for Texas residents hitting the road for the Fourth of July weekend. But that isn't the case for residents in other states like Hawaii, Alaska, or Washington, where gas prices have not seen as much relief.

"Lower prices and higher household incomes make a fill-up relatively affordable in some states, while gas costs consume a larger share of household income in others," the report said. "Three Pacific states continue to have the nation’s highest pump prices. A gallon of regular gasoline averages $5.52 in Hawaii, $5.46 in California and $5.20 in Washington."

The top 10 states with the biggest gas price drops since May 21 are:

No. 1 – Colorado
No. 2 – Kentucky
No. 3 – Indiana
No. 4 – Tennessee
No. 5 – Ohio
No. 6 – Texas
No. 7 – Iowa
No. 8 – Wisconsin
No. 9 – Oklahoma
No. 10 – Illinois

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