Poynter & Bucheri, an Indianapolis injury law firm, analyzed 10 years (2016-2025) of IMPD crash reports from the City of Indianapolis Vision Zero crash map. Citywide, Indy 500 weekends (Friday-Monday) had about 3% fewer crashes than comparison weekends, but within 5 km (about 3.1 miles) of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, race weekends had about 31% more crashes, higher in all 10 years.
Race weekend brings hundreds of thousands of extra people to the west side (the Speedway Police Department says the town's May population swells to over 325,000). So does that mean more wrecks? We looked at ten years of Indianapolis crash reports and six years of federal fatal-crash data to find out.
Key findings: Indy 500 weekend crashes in Indianapolis
- Citywide, Indianapolis had 2,576 IMPD-reported crashes over 10 Indy 500 weekends (Friday-Monday, 2016-2025), compared with 2,650.5 on comparison weekends two and three weeks before and after, about 3% fewer. Fewer crashes on race Monday account for most of the difference.
- On race day itself, Indianapolis had 615 crashes over 10 race Sundays, compared with 547.5 on comparison Sundays (12.3% more). Race day was higher in 7 of 10 years, and lower in 2019, 2020 and 2025.
- Within 5 km (about 3.1 miles) of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, race weekends had 455 crashes, compared with 346.75 on comparison weekends, about 31% more, and higher in every one of the 10 years.
- Race Monday, which was Memorial Day in 9 of 10 years, had 26.2% fewer crashes than comparison Mondays, offsetting the busier race Sunday.
- Statewide in Indiana, there were 82 traffic deaths over the six race weekends from 2019 to 2024, against 70.75 on comparison weekends (about 16% more). Most of that gap is 2024, which had 20. Eleven of those were on Memorial Day Monday, including two crashes in southern Indiana that each killed several people, far from the track. Only 3 of the 20 were in Marion County. Leave 2024 out and it's 62 against 58.5, about 6%. The data doesn't show that race traffic caused the increase. Most of the 2024 deaths were far from the track.
Indy 500 weekend crashes by year, citywide and near the Speedway (2016-2025)
Table 1. IMPD-reported crashes, Friday-Monday of race weekend, compared with the average of four comparison weekends (2 and 3 weeks before and after). "Near the track" = within 5 km of the Speedway's center point.
| Year | Race day | Race weekend crashes | Comparison weekends (avg) | Near the track: race weekend | Near the track: comparison (avg) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | May 29 | 258 | 289.5 | 51 | 30.2 |
| 2017 | May 28 | 299 | 300.2 | 51 | 34.5 |
| 2018 | May 27 | 266 | 274.2 | 47 | 34.8 |
| 2019 | May 26 | 271 | 294.0 | 48 | 40.8 |
| 2020* | Aug. 23 | 242 | 246.8 | 39 | 31.8 |
| 2021 | May 30 | 293 | 288.5 | 54 | 35.2 |
| 2022 | May 29 | 297 | 281.0 | 46 | 41.5 |
| 2023 | May 28 | 250 | 257.5 | 45 | 35.0 |
| 2024 | May 26 | 222 | 224.0 | 40 | 35.0 |
| 2025 | May 25 | 178 | 194.8 | 34 | 28.0 |
*In 2020 the race was moved to August and run without fans.
Download the data: indy-500-weekend-crashes-2016-2025.csv.
Crashes near Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Within 5 km (about 3.1 miles) of the Speedway's center point, the map shows 455 crashes on race weekends, against 346.75 on comparison weekends. That's about 31% more, and race weekend was higher in every one of the 10 years. There's one big gap, though: the Town of Speedway has its own police department, and its crashes are mostly not in this IMPD data. So this count mostly covers the Indianapolis neighborhoods around the town, not the streets right outside the track. If you were hurt in a crash in the town, see our Speedway car accident page.
Why don't Indy 500 weekends raise citywide crashes?
Citywide Indy 500 weekend crashes stay flat mainly because race Monday runs well below normal. Race Monday was Memorial Day in 9 of the 10 years, a holiday with little commuter traffic, which may help explain it. (In 2020 the race was in August, so that Monday was a regular one.) Across the 10 years, race Mondays had 26.2% fewer crashes than comparison Mondays, while race Sundays had 12.3% more. Fridays were up 6.0%, and Saturdays were down 2.6%.
Do traffic deaths rise in Indiana on Indy 500 weekend?
Somewhat, but mostly because of one year. Indiana had 82 traffic deaths over the 2019-2024 race weekends, against 70.75 on comparison weekends. In 2024 there were 20, and 11 of them were on Memorial Day Monday, including two crashes in southern Indiana that each killed several people, far from the track. Only 3 of the 20 were in Marion County. Without 2024 it was 62 against 58.5, about 6%. The data doesn't show that race traffic caused the increase. Most of the 2024 deaths were far from the track.
Table 2. Indiana traffic deaths, race weekend Friday-Monday vs comparison-weekend average, NHTSA FARS.
| Year | Race weekend deaths | Comparison weekends (avg) |
|---|---|---|
| 2019 | 11 | 9.5 |
| 2020 | 15 | 10.75 |
| 2021 | 13 | 13.5 |
| 2022 | 14 | 12.25 |
| 2023 | 9 | 12.5 |
| 2024 | 20 | 12.25 |
Safety tips for Indy 500 weekend in Indianapolis
- If you're going to the race, plan your ride home before the first beer.
- Near the Speedway, crashes ran higher on race weekend in all 10 years, so if you live on the west side, give yourself extra time all weekend, not just Sunday.
- Watch for people walking along the roads near the track. Traffic patterns aren't normal that weekend. (Pedestrian and bicycle accidents)
If someone else's driving hurt you, get checked out, keep your paperwork, and call Poynter & Bucheri at (317) 780-8000 if you have questions. You can also read how to get your Indiana crash report or check your filing deadline.
FAQ
Are there more car crashes in Indianapolis on Indy 500 weekend? Not citywide. Over 10 race weekends (2016-2025), Indianapolis had about 3% fewer IMPD-reported crashes than on comparison weekends, though race Sunday itself ran 12.3% higher.
Are there more crashes near the Indianapolis Motor Speedway during race weekend? Yes. Within 5 km (about 3.1 miles) of the Speedway, race weekends had about 31% more crashes than comparison weekends, and were higher in all 10 years studied. Crashes inside the Town of Speedway are mostly not in this data.
Do traffic deaths go up in Indiana on Indy 500 weekend? Somewhat, but mostly because of one year. Indiana had 82 deaths over the 2019-2024 race weekends vs 70.75 on comparison weekends; without 2024 it was 62 vs 58.5, about 6%. Most 2024 deaths were far from the track.
Methodology: how we measured Indy 500 weekend crashes
- Crashes. Every IMPD-reported crash on the City of Indianapolis Vision Zero crash map, 2016-2025, counted by local calendar day, Friday through Monday. Data pulled October 2026. "Near the track" means within 5 km (about 3.1 miles) of the Speedway's center point, using each crash's mapped location.
- Race dates. The race Sundays in Table 1: May 29, 2016; May 28, 2017; May 27, 2018; May 26, 2019; Aug. 23, 2020; May 30, 2021; May 29, 2022; May 28, 2023; May 26, 2024; May 25, 2025.
- Comparison weekends. The Friday-Monday stretches 2 and 3 weeks before and after race weekend, in the same year. Comparison totals (547.5 Sundays; 346.75 near the track) are the sums of each year's comparison-weekend average.
- Deaths. NHTSA's Fatality Analysis Reporting System, Indiana, 2019-2024, by crash date. Weekends run Friday through Monday. 2024 comes from the latest published national file. The 2024 Memorial Day count of 11 also appears in Indiana Crash Facts 2024.
Limitations
- The Town of Speedway has its own police department, so crashes inside Speedway are mostly not in this data. The Speedway police, IMPD and the State Police don't publish race-weekend crash counts. Speedway publishes yearly totals only, so we can't fill in the town itself.
- The comparison weekends aren't all ordinary weekends. Two weeks before the 500 is usually the IndyCar Grand Prix on the road course. In 2020, one comparison weekend was Labor Day. In 2022 and 2023, one included the Juneteenth holiday Monday (the 2023 one had only 165 crashes). We kept them in and are telling you about them.
- This shows when crashes happened, not why. Race weekend also brings more traffic overall.
This study is not affiliated with, sponsored by, or endorsed by Indianapolis Motor Speedway or IndyCar. "Indianapolis 500" and "Indy 500" are used only to name the event.
How to cite this study
Poynter & Bucheri, LLC, "Indy 500 Weekend Crashes in Indianapolis (2016-2025)," indianaaccidents.com, October 30, 2026. Journalists may use the findings and tables with a link to this page. The data files, map and charts are licensed under CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/): you may reuse them with credit to Poynter & Bucheri and a link back to this study. The article text and the firm's name and logo remain all rights reserved, and are not covered by that license. Media contact: (317) 780-8000, don@pb-law.com.