Car Accidents in San Diego, CA: Crash Data and Road Safety
Key crash statistics, high-risk roads, and accident report resources in San Diego.
After an Accident in San Diego: Reports and Agencies
The San Diego Police Department investigates crashes on city streets. The California Highway Patrol handles freeway crashes, and its San Diego Area office is at 5902 Kearny Villa Road in Kearny Mesa. The San Diego County Sheriff covers unincorporated communities and the smaller cities that contract with it for policing.
SDPD collision reports come from the Records Division at 1401 Broadway downtown, open Monday through Thursday from 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. The fee is $12 per report in person or by mail, and mail requests go to SDPD Records MS#726, P.O. Box 121431, San Diego, CA 92112. Reports are also sold online through LexisNexis eCrash for an added charge. Allow three to 10 business days from the date of the crash.
Under California Vehicle Code 20012, SDPD releases reports to people who could face civil liability from the crash, including drivers, injured passengers, insurers and the employers of drivers. Reports are not released to people arrested or named as suspects.
CHP reports are requested on a CHP 190 form, through the CHP online Crash Portal or from the office that took the report. Separately, California drivers must send an SR-1 form to the DMV within 10 days when a crash injures or kills anyone or causes more than $1,000 in damage.
If you are not sure which agency took your report, we can help you track it down. Our California accident resources collect reports from across the state.
High-Crash Intersections Across San Diego
In January 2026 the City of San Diego named 14 locations where five or more injury or fatal crashes happened in 2024, and scheduled fixes such as flashing beacons, pedestrian countdown timers, new crosswalks and red curbs at corners.
- 10th Avenue and A Street, downtown.On the 2026 list, and ninth on Circulate San Diego’s 2018 “Fatal Fifteen” list of the city’s most dangerous intersections for pedestrians.
- Garnet Avenue and Mission Bay Drive, Pacific Beach.Also on the 2026 list.
- Fairmount Avenue, Montezuma Road to Talmadge Canyon Row.A stretch of Fairmount on the 2026 list.
- Otay Center Drive and Siempre Viva Road, Otay Mesa.On the 2026 list, in Otay Mesa near the border.
- El Cajon Boulevard.The City’s January 2025 list, built from 2023 crash data, included El Cajon Boulevard from 63rd Street to Choctaw Drive and its intersection with Art Street. Farther west, El Cajon, Park Boulevard and Normal Street converge at one intersection, which KPBS reported in 2024 had long been known as dangerous; a driver who ran a red light struck and killed a pedestrian there in June 2023.
Recent reports from around the city include a pedestrian seriously hurt on Euclid Avenue and a three-injury crash on I-5 near Hawthorn Street.
San Diego Crash Figures
| Measure | Figure | Year | Source |
| Traffic fatalities, City count | 54 | 2024 | City of San Diego Vision Zero update |
| Severe injuries, City count | 138 | 2024 | City of San Diego Vision Zero update |
| People killed or injured in crashes | 4,861 | 2023 | California Office of Traffic Safety |
| Pedestrians killed or injured | 522 | 2023 | California Office of Traffic Safety |
| Bicyclists killed or injured | 380 | 2023 | California Office of Traffic Safety |
| Motorcyclists killed or injured | 349, 4th worst of 15 large California cities | 2023 | California Office of Traffic Safety |
These are the most recent published figures. The 2024 counts come from the City’s August 2025 Vision Zero update, and the 2023 counts from the Office of Traffic Safety, which ranks San Diego against the 14 other California cities over 250,000 people. The City’s count ran 67, 69 and 70 from 2021 to 2023 before falling to 54, and San Diego ranked 13th of the 15 on total injuries and deaths, where first is worst.
Trauma Care in San Diego
UC San Diego Health’s Hillcrest Medical Center, 200 West Arbor Drive
Scripps Mercy Hospital, 4077 Fifth Avenue
Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla, 9888 Genesee Avenue
Sharp Memorial Hospital, 7901 Frost Street, Kearny Mesa
Rady Children’s Hospital, Children’s Way
After a crash, we can connect you with local help, from doctors and body shops to injury attorneys. Contact our team.
What San Diego Drivers Ask After a Crash
Which San Diego intersections have the most crashes?
The City’s January 2026 high-crash list named 14 locations with five or more injury or fatal crashes in 2024, among them 10th Avenue at A Street downtown, Garnet Avenue at Mission Bay Drive in Pacific Beach, and Otay Center Drive at Siempre Viva Road in Otay Mesa. Each is scheduled for safety fixes.
Are traffic deaths in San Diego going up or down?
Down in the most recent published year. The City of San Diego counted 54 traffic fatalities in 2024, after 67 in 2021, 69 in 2022 and 70 in 2023, according to its August 2025 Vision Zero update. Severe injuries totaled 138 in 2024. The City had not published a full-year 2025 figure as of September 2026.
How much does a San Diego police accident report cost?
An SDPD traffic collision report costs $12 in person at the Records Division, 1401 Broadway, or by mail. Online copies through LexisNexis eCrash carry an added charge. SDPD says to allow three to 10 business days after the crash, and releases reports only to people involved or liable.
Where are crash victims taken for trauma care in San Diego?
San Diego has three adult Level I trauma centers: UC San Diego Health Hillcrest, Scripps Mercy in Hillcrest and Scripps Memorial La Jolla. Sharp Memorial in Kearny Mesa is Level II, and Rady Children’s Hospital is the county’s only Level I pediatric trauma center.
San Diego County Accident Reports on Local Accident Reports
Sedan, Semi-Truck Collide on I-805 SB in San Diego, CA
Two-Vehicle Crash Injures One at Watt Rd and Ramona Oaks Rd in Ramona, CA
Motorcycle Rider Down After Crash With Pickup on NB I-5 in San Diego, CA
Two-Vehicle Crash Injures Occupants on SR-76 in Pala, CA
One Injured in Crash on Rancho Bernardo Rd in Rancho Bernardo, CA
At Local Accident Reports, we cover crashes in all fifty states. But that’s not all; we also report the latest crashes county by county, not just state by state. Our goal is to give drivers and other road users reliable, up-to-date crash information for any location they’re interested in.
Here you can find some of the most recent crashes in San Diego County, which covers the city of San Diego along with Oceanside, Escondido, Vista, Encinitas and Poway, and unincorporated communities such as Spring Valley and Valley Center. The full archive is at San Diego County accident news.
Similar conditions turn up on high-crash roads across California, and recent accident alerts follow new crashes as they are reported.
Local Accident Reports compiles this information from public agency sources and published reports for general reference. It is not legal advice and is not an official police record. Fees, forms and deadlines change, so confirm with the agency before you send a request. Last updated October 2026.