Society for Risk Analysis Jun 30 2026 Reviewed On any given U.S. holiday, traffic crashes claim more than 500 lives. But according to a new study published in Risk Analysis , the real danger lurks early in the annual calendar. The spring break window (from late February through early April) carries a significantly higher traffic fatality and injury risk than the Thanksgiving to New Year's Day holiday stretch, and every other period of the year.  Researchers Dr. Michael T. French, professor and