How many traffic fatalities occurred in Kern County, California?

Kern County recorded 1,469 total traffic fatalities across 1,327 reported crashes over the data period (2016-2023). The most recent year saw 176 fatalities. The county averages approximately 163.2 fatalities per year.

What is the leading cause of road fatalities in Kern County?

Despite a comparatively active crash history (1,327 recorded crashes), individual cause-code breakdowns are not published for Kern County in the current FARS release. Statewide data for California may provide additional context.

Is the trend of road fatalities in Kern County increasing or decreasing?

The trend in Kern County is increasing. This indicates that traffic fatalities have risen over the data period, warranting attention to road safety initiatives.

What is the fatality rate per capita in Kern County?

Kern County has a fatality rate of 19.3 per 100,000 residents, which places it close to the national middle by that per-capita measure among the 3,137 U.S. counties in this dataset.

How does Kern County compare to the rest of California?

Kern County's per-capita rate of 19.3 per 100,000 residents is above the California county average of 16.9. Visit the California state page for the full county-by-county breakdown.

Where does the road fatality data for Kern County come from?

All road fatality data comes from the NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), a census of fatal motor vehicle crashes on public roads in the United States. FARS data covers the period 2016-2023 and includes all crashes resulting in at least one fatality within 30 days.

COUNTY FATALITY DATA

Kern County, California

Road fatality data for Kern County (CA). Data period: 2016-2023.

Compiled by PlainRoadSafety · August 9, 2026

1,469
Total Fatalities (2016-2023): 176
Latest Year Deaths: 19.3
Per 100k Residents: Increasing
Trend

The verdict

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Fatality Analysis Reporting System, Kern County ranks #892 of 2,328 U.S. counties by road-fatality rate per 100,000 residents (highest first) and #18 of 54 rated counties in CA. Kern County's fatality rate of 19.3 per 100,000 residents places it close to the national middle by that per-capita measure.

#892 of 2,328
national by fatality rate: #18 of 54
in CA by rate: 38%
of rated U.S. counties are deadlier per capita: Increasing
fatality trend

NHTSA FARS milepost

Milepost KERN-29 · Kern 19.3/100k · #892 of 2,328

Kern County · 19.3/100k · increasing · cause n/a

FARS 19.3/100k
NHTSA #892 of 2,328
MILE 1,469 book
POST Increasing
BAND near Davidson
VOL +14.1% vs CA

Stamps derive from this county's NHTSA FARS row (per-100k or book, corpus rank, trend, nationwide peer NAME, vs-state gap), not a trip-risk forecast. PlainRoadSafety is informational only. See our disclaimer. Verify with NHTSA FARS → · Read with methodology → · Understanding road fatality data → · California state profile →

Escambia

19
Volusia

19
Polk

19
Kern

19
Davidson

19

What this shows Kern County sits among nearest nationwide per-capita peers.

How does Kern County compare?

2023 road deaths per 100,000 residents. Choose any comparison from the menu.

Compare with

Kern County

19.3 per 100k

California county average

16.9 per 100k

Kern County is About the same as the comparison

2023 road deaths from the NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System over population from the U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program (Vintage 2023). Rates shown for counties with 10,000+ residents and a 2023 FARS record.

Among the 15 rated counties in California, Kern County ranks 15 for per-capita risk, above the state's own per-capita average of 16.9 per 100,000 -- nationally, this rate places it close to the national middle by that per-capita measure. The gap between Kern County's rate and the state average is 2.4 per 100,000. Its closest per-capita peer statewide is Colusa County, at 22.7 per 100,000 (a difference of 3.4). Its peer counties, highest to lowest per 100,000 residents: Trinity County (51.1), Glenn County (46.2), Siskiyou County (42.0), Inyo County (37.8), Tuolumne County (35.1), Calaveras County (30.1), Lake County (28.0), Amador County (26.3), Kings County (24.9), Mendocino County (24.7), Lassen County (24.3), Sutter County (23.5), Yuba County (23.3), Colusa County (22.7).

Kern County's rate vs. every rated U.S. county

Deaths per 100,000 residents -- counties with 10,000+ people, NHTSA FARS over Census population

19 Around the middle a lower per-capita rate than 38% of 2,328 rated counties

rated U.S. counties, bucketed by value

Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more rated counties. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count and share, and where it sits relative to this entry.

Source NHTSA FARS over U.S. Census Bureau population estimates · 2026-08-09

Kern County's rate vs. the California state average

← Back to California All States

Source: NHTSA Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) This information is for research and informational purposes only

Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

Counties with similar FARS profiles

Two cross-state peer sets for Kern County. Same-state rate comparisons stay in the chart above; these neighborhoods are nearest other-state counties with population at least 250,000.

Similar per-capita fatality rate

Nearest counties by deaths per 100,000 residents (19.3 here), outside California.

Davidson County 19.4 /100k · TN Polk County 19.2 /100k · FL Volusia County 19.1 /100k · FL Escambia County 19.0 /100k · FL

Similar fatality volume

Nearest counties by recorded FARS deaths (1,469 here), excluding the rate-peer set.

Orange County 1,479 deaths · FL Palm Beach County 1,524 deaths · FL Tarrant County 1,539 deaths · TX Shelby County 1,571 deaths · TN

Verify with NHTSA FARS →

Verify with FHWA →

Source and method. PlainRoadSafety is rendered directly from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS). PlainRoadSafety aggregates published FARS records and does not invent a fatality count the census does not report. County figures are computed directly from NHTSA FARS census data, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our Editorial & Corrections Policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or Report a correction. Data current as of October 2024.