Sober Drivers Still Face Nearly 4x Nighttime Fatal Crash Risk, Waymo Study Finds

Waymo research found that even fully sober human drivers face nighttime fatal crash risk 3.1 to 3.9 times higher than daytime risk, pointing to systemic hazards beyond impairment.

The study used an exposure reconstruction model across the 50 most populous U.S. urban areas, showing removing alcohol-involved drivers lowers the average urban fatal crash rate by 23%, from 1.42 to 1.10 per 100 million miles.