Car Insurance in Abilene, TX [Cheap Rates + Best Coverage]

Frontiering.

It’s the unofficial motto of Abilene, one that resonates from the time Clabe Merchant formed the city in 1881, auctioning off lots in the bare expanse of central Texas.

It’s the motto today for students, K-12 and college-aged, pursuing disciplines ranging from science to engineering to mathematics to art.

Dare to dream, exploring the unknown — frontiering. Today, we’re frontiering as well. It may not be the excitement of the Wild West or the disciplined pursuit of advancements in math and science, but it’s still important.

And it could save you a lot of money.

If you’re on this page, you’re likely looking for car insurance for yourself, a family member, or a friend. When you were researching, you may have found it confusing.

There are technical terms like “GAP coverage” and “hard-braking incidents,” “collision versus comprehensive,” “deductibles and premiums.” It may have given you a headache; you may have wanted to bang your head against the wall.

We understand. We feel your pain.

Here, in this complete guide, we take the technical and put it in layman’s terms. We take the complicated and make it simple. We research for you and draw conclusions.

Here, you’ll find what you need. After you’re done, you should have all you need to make an informed decision about car insurance in Abilene, Texas.

Ready?

Start that engine. We’re headed to the frontier.

Ready to compare rates? Try our FREE online tool!

The Cost of Car Insurance in Abilene

Imagine this.

You’re walking to the mailbox, hoping for numerous unsolicited checks to cash, when you see a letter from your car insurance company.

Maybe you’ve had a fender bender, gotten a ticket, or even gotten divorced. You’ve been dreading this moment.

You walk inside and open the envelope, scan it, and see the numbers in bold. You say—how did they get that?

We understand. We feel your pain.

Insurance companies set their rates using numerous factors, most of which may seem vague or arbitrary. You may not even know them at all. That’s what we’re here for.

In this section, we’ll cover over 10 factors that influence your rates, including the best companies for factors like credit history and driving record. And that all-important cheapest company.

Ready? We’re headed West.

– Male vs. Female vs. Age

One factor that most people know influences rates is a person’s age. But by how much?

The median age in Abilene is 31.2, which is when car insurance rates start to level out.

The following numbers come from our partner Quadrant, who has the inside track to the car insurance industry. All raw statistics are generally coming from it unless otherwise noted.

Between 25 and 35 years of age, there’s a roughly $550 drop in the average car insurance rates, though that’s not the biggest.

If you’re the average 17-year-old, your rates are roughly $4,000 more than the next age group. Why do insurance companies set rates according to age?

They believe the younger you are, the more inexperienced of a driver you are and, at least in the case of teenagers and young adults, more inclined to risk-taking behavior.

That logic (at least with risk-taking) extends to gender, as well.

• The average male premium in Abilene: $3,603.54
• The average female premium: $3,400.29

Insurance companies believe that males are more likely to get into accidents, get speeding tickets, and file claims, and they are not necessarily wrong. According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, males are much more likely to die in a fatal crash than men.

They write, “Men typically drive more miles than women and more often engage in risky driving practices including not using safety belts, driving while impaired by alcohol, and speeding.”

Insurance companies set rates accordingly. The demographics show an interesting picture between age, gender, and marital status.

The difference between the highest rate ($7,500) for a single, 17-year-old male and the lowest ($2,150) for a married, 60-year-old woman is $5,350.

Why does being married affect rates? Insurance companies believe that a married person is more responsible, less likely to take risks, and is probably more financially secure.

An important note is that more states are doing away with these demographic factors — or they’re trying to. For instance, California became the 6th full state to ban using gender to set rates.

The idea was to make setting rates more equal between genders; although, this movement towards progression has an ironic effect: It’ll push rates to the middle, raising females’ and lowering males’.

– Cheapest Zip Codes in Abilene

Have you heard the story of the two neighbors?

Both had the same car insurance company, both had the same plans, and yet they had wildly different rates. The factor separating them was their zip codes.

The Consumer Federation of America looked at premiums from six companies in 10 cities and found that insurance companies often varied rates for adjacent zip codes by hundreds of dollars.

This was true even if those zip codes cut through the same neighborhood or, further, separated two neighbors. Fortunately, in Abilene, there isn’t much of a change between the highest and lowest zip codes.

There is less than a $200 difference between the highest rate per zip code (79603) and the lowest (79606).

So, why do insurance companies vary rates according to zip codes?

Insurance companies research and find that some zip codes have a higher rate of filing claims than others; some issues could include more accidents, citations, or theft.

The Consumer Federation of America found that it disproportionately affected minorities. There’s been a movement to do away with this, as well.

– What’s the Best Car Insurance Company in Abilene?

We’ve covered four factors that influence car insurance rates: age, gender, marital status, and zip code.

In this section, we’ll cover four more and answer that all-important question: which company in Abilene has the lowest insurance rates?

Onward into the frontier we go.

– Cheapest Car Insurance Rates by Company

You may have asked that very question many times: who has the lowest rates in Abilene? We have the answer.

USAA has the lowest rates by a large margin with an average rate of $2,100. There are three overall brackets: between $2,000 and $3,000, $3,000 and $4,100, and higher.

• Between $2,000 and $3,000: USAA ($2,100), State Farm ($2,600), and Geico ($2,960)
• Between $3,000 and $4,100: Nationwide ($3,500) and Progressive ($4,100)
• Between $4,500 and $5,500: American Family ($4,600) and Allstate ($5,300)

Why do rates vary so widely between companies? There are a few reasons.

First, companies have different consumer bases, meaning each base may order different coverages than the other, raising or lowering rates.

Second, there’s the issue of operating costs. Each company may pay its employees differently, and there are processes with fulfilling claims and providing customer service.

Third, is the number of anticipated claims being filed. Each company may use a different formula to determine how likely a client is to file a claim, which could adjust average premium costs.

All that combined leads to different rates. The cheapest company might not be the best and the most expensive company might not be the worst.

But there’s a way to narrow that down.

Every year, J.D. Power releases a study that gauges customer satisfaction for major insurance companies in a state or region.

In terms of the companies we’ve covered, USAA is at the top. Allstate is second, followed by Geico and State Farm. Nationwide and Progressive are less than average, and American Family isn’t even listed.

– Best Car Insurance for Commute Rates

Your commute distance or annual mileage can affect your rates, as insurance companies believe the more you drive, the more likely you’ll file a claim.

In Abilene, just three companies change their rates according to commute distance or annual mileage.

Those are USAA (+$50), Geico (+$100), and Allstate (+$250).

Four don’t adjust their rates at all.

– Best Car Insurance for Coverage Level Rates

Coverage levels depend on different factors: the actual amount of coverage, like having additional coverages such as comprehensive or collision, or the coverage limits (the payout).

Coverage limits, like average premiums, vary according to the company.

The largest split between high and low coverages is American Family, with a $530 difference between high and low plans.

USAA is the lowest with about a $140 price difference; Allstate, Geico, and State Farm aren’t far behind with roughly $250 differences.

Often coverages such as comprehensive and collision are relatively inexpensive compared to liability; this can make the price difference fairly minimal between high and low coverages.

– Best Car Insurance for Credit History Rates

You have a score that affects the interest rate on your car loan, whether you’ll get a mortgage, and whether you’ll be approved for that fancy, black card.

It’s your credit score, and it affects more than just loans and interest rates; it affects your car insurance as well.

According to Consumer Reports, which did an exhaustive study of 10-years-worth of car insurance rates, insurance companies use credit scores to determine rates — but not your FICO.

Insurance companies have their formulas for determining rates, a kind of “secret sauce,” as the Consumer Reports spokesperson puts it in the interview.

What do these rates look like in Abilene?

Having a poor versus a good credit score can cost you thousands of dollars.

• The company with the largest difference between a good credit score and poor is American Family at $3,100.
• The company with the smallest difference is Nationwide at $1,300.

Why do companies use a credit score to set rates? Insurance companies believe that credit scores determine how likely a person is to file a claim; this includes issues like risky spending.

However, there are some legislators, even at the national level, pushing back at this.

Representative Rashida Tlaib from Michigan has introduced a bill that would prohibit credit bureaus from sending data over to insurance companies.

On average, between all companies, the difference between a poor credit score and a good credit score is $2,000.

– Best Car Insurance for Driving Record Rates

Now to the one people want used (solely) to determine your rates: your driving record.

Driving records, like credit scores, can be a boom-or-bust situation: a clean record can save you thousands of dollars on a premium, while even a small infraction like a ticket . . .

Well, it can jump it hundreds of dollars.

Most infractions cost hundreds of dollars, while some cost thousands.

• The best companies for a speeding ticket: State Farm and American Family (no changes)
• The best company for an accident: Nationwide (no change)
• The best company for a DUI: Geico (+$250)

Averaging them out shows how expensive each infraction is on the whole when compared to others.

A speeding ticket is the least expensive — a $250 bump on average. DUIs and accidents are surprisingly even: DUIs at $4,100 and accidents at $3,900.

With either, there are additional expenses, such as tickets with accidents and jail time/lawyer fees with DUIs.

– Car Insurance Factors in Abilene

We’ve covered eight factors that influence your car insurance rates, but there are many more.

In this section, we’ll touch on two, along with that all-important question: what percentage of my income am I (and my fellow residents of Abilene) paying on car insurance?

Give it a little gas; we’ll be entering a certain kind of frontier — the nitty, gritty city statistics of Abilene.

– Median Household Income

The median household income in Abilene is the mid-level income; it’s not the mean or the average, but it’s the income of the person who is sitting between everyone else.

The data and the graphs in the following several sections come from Data USA, which is an organization that culls data from government sources to provide area profiles.

In Abilene, the median household income is $46,093, which is lower than the median income of many local and broader geographical areas.

• Jones County: $48,601
• Taylor County: $49,161
• Texas: $57,051
• The United States: $57,652

A bar chart depicting the concentrations of income levels shows most being concentrated between $50,000 and $125,000.

Now, what does this have to do with car insurance?

We, here at TexasCarInsurance.com, have a handy statistic that shows the impact your car insurance premium has on your overall pocketbook: premium as a percentage of income.

Otherwise known as, PaPI.

The PaPI of Abilene residents is 11.32 percent, meaning the average resident pays 11.32 percent of their income on car insurance. That’s quite high. How does this stack up with other cities?

Abilene is the lowest of the four. To figure out your own PaPI, plug your information into the calculator below.

CalculatorPro

– Homeownership in Abilene

Being a homeowner can affect your car insurance rates. Why?

Insurance companies believe that being a homeowner means being responsible and being financially secure. It can also be associated with having a good credit score.

The median property value in Abilene is $106,800. The spread shows that the largest cluster is between $100,000 and $175,000.

Overall, homeowners in Abilene have more houses under the $175,000 bracket compared to the national average, and fewer houses above that amount.

This includes properties that are worth $40,000 and less.

When it comes to rent-to-own, which is a statistic looking at how many homeowners occupy their homes, Abilene’s percentage is 54.5 percent.

This means that just 54.5 percent of homeowners in Abilene occupy their homes. This is lower than in many other geographic regions.

• Jones County: 73.9 percent
• Taylor County: 59 percent
• Texas: 62 percent
• The United States: 63.8 percent

This may go along with the fact that Abilene is a college town with numerous universities. This leads to many low-income, young, transient people in the city who can only afford to rent.

– Education in Abilene

Education is a big deal in Abilene. The city is home to three major universities and a strong independent school district.

The three major universities combined for around 1,800 degrees awarded in 2016, awarded to a wide range of students with different backgrounds and ethnicities.

• Abilene Christian University: 1,109 degrees awarded
• Hardin-Simmons University: 474 degrees awarded
• McMurry University: 208 degrees awarded

Those students graduated with varying degrees in different concentrations.

The top three degrees showed that variance.

• Registered Nursing: 86 degrees awarded
• General Psychology: 79 degrees awarded
• Accounting: 70 degrees awarded

Master’s degrees were also varied among different disciplines.

The three most common Master’s Degrees were spread out over three disparate fields.

• Other Multidisciplinary Studies: 52 degrees awarded
• Peace Studies & Conflict Resolution: 29 degrees awarded
• Accounting: 28 degrees awarded

Overall, there are over 10,000 university students in Abilene each year, with thousands more in the K-12 independent school district.

It’s part of what makes Abilene The Friendly Frontier.

– Wage by Race & Ethnicity in Common Jobs

Back to that PaPI thing. When it comes to the percentage of your income you’re paying for your premium, the cost of your premium matters; however, your level of income matters more.

And that bodes well for some races and ethnicities, and not so much for others. The following graph shows the spread of incomes between the races and ethnicities for five common jobs.

Often, the wages per race and ethnicity vary significantly, with one race having a high average wage for one job but less for others.

Because wages can vary a great deal, the average PaPI for each race varies considerably, as well.

The wage difference within miscellaneous managers between the highest-earning race (Asians) and the lowest (Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander) is $61,000.

The difference in their PaPIs because of that wage difference is over 6 percent.

The wage difference within the driver/sales workers and truck drivers professions between the highest-earning race (Other) and the lowest (Asians) is around $13,500.

The difference in their PaPIs because of that wage difference is around 4.5 percent.

There are some historical differences in wages between races, most notably that minority races are generally paid less than whites, in particular blacks and Hispanics.

Fortunately, there are some organizations aimed at fighting this.

– Wage by Gender in Common Jobs

It is fairly well-known that women earn less than men, with some companies putting the number at 79 cents—women earn 79 cents for every dollar men make.

While women may now earn the same amount as men based on position and job qualifications, they still occupy more lower-paying jobs than men.

And there’s the issue with women being paid less even in female-dominated professions. In Abilene, the gender wage gap is apparent in all categories of surveyed common jobs.

From miscellaneous managers to cashiers, women earn less. How does this affect each gender’s PaPI numbers?

There’s an over -$34,000 wage gap between men and women within miscellaneous managers, which equals a 2 percent difference in PaPI.

Within elementary and middle school teachers, the gap is much smaller (just $5,000) and the difference in PaPI is just 1 percent.

However, a percent makes a difference, and considering that teaching is a female-dominated profession, the gender wage gap poses a difficult burden.

Fortunately, some organizations are trying to close it.

– Poverty by Age & Gender

17.7 percent of the population living in Abilene is beneath the poverty line, far higher than the U.S. average of 13.4 percent.

Much of this, likely, has to do with the student population in Abilene; however, the statistics paint a picture of certain ages and genders this affects the most.

Two of the three largest demographic blocks in poverty are female, and all three are between the ages of 18 – 34.

• Females between the ages of 18 – 24: 13.9 percent
• Females between the ages of 25 – 34: 8.59 percent
• Males between the ages of 18 – 24: 7.88 percent

Note: These are all percentages shares, which means the weight of each demographic compared against each other. It’s not indicative of a percentage of that demographic in poverty.

According to Legal Momentum, women are 35 percent more likely to be poor than men in America. Issues include the gender wage gap and unaffordable childcare, among others.

– Poverty by Race & Ethnicity

To get a good look at poverty by race and ethnicity, it’s important to break down which races and ethnicities are most populous in Abilene.

The top three racial or ethnic blocks in Abilene are whites alone (nearly 60 percent), Hispanic or Latino (a little over 25 percent), and blacks (around 10 percent).

When it comes to the percentage share for poverty by race and ethnicity, it’s important to compare them to the shares in the actual population.

In the case of Abilene, whites and blacks are underrepresented in poverty share, while Hispanics and Latinos are about even. It’s the other category that spikes the most.

– Employment by Occupations

In Abilene, there were roughly 53,300 employees in 2017, up from 52,200 in 2016, a 2.14 percent rise.

Those employees are divided into numerous industries and within occupations, with everything from management to material moving occupations.

The three largest categories are within the sales and office occupations and food service.

• Office & Administrative Support Occupations: (7,233 people or 13.6 percent)
• Sales & Related Occupations: (5,907 people or 11.1 percent)
• Food Preparation & Serving Related Occupations: (4,083 people or 7.66 percent)

The management, business, science, and arts occupations (in orange) have the most total employees out of the five categories.

The largest three categories here are in three significantly different types of occupations.

• Management Occupations: (3,880 people or 24.4 percent)
• Education, Training, & Library Occupations: (3,242 people or 20.4 percent)
• Health Diagnosing & Treating Practitioners & Other Technical Occupations: (2,098 people or 13.2 percent).

With healthcare and education being two of the three largest industries in Abilene, this might not be a surprise. But the jobs signify one thing — Abilene lives up to its frontiering motto.

Driving in Abilene

Imagine this:

You’re planning a road trip to a nearby frontier city (we are in the Wild West, after all), when that very morning, as you’re drinking your coffee, your car alarm goes off.

You run outside and see the thief take off down the road. Your window is busted, there’s glass everywhere, and suddenly your day seems ruined.

You have questions: where is the nearest repair shop, should I alter my road trip plans, and, of course, what exactly were the odds my car would be broken into?

We have answers to those questions and many more, including, “How safe are Abilene’s roads?”

If you’ve ever researched those questions, you may have found the answers to be confusing. They are bogged down in statistics, with little explanation.

We understand. We feel your pain.

In this section, we look at three big categories — roads, vehicles, and transportation — and break them down. We use statistics but explain them fully.

We want to give you a complete look at driving in Abilene so you can be better informed when you drive in The Friendly Frontier.

Time to give it gas. We’re going on a tour around Abilene.

– Roads in Abilene

Has this ever happened to you?

You’re approaching a red light, pulling up slowly, when you miss the white line slightly, your hood inching over into the intersection.

You think nothing of it until a week later when you receive a letter in the mail: You owe the city $49.95.

Red-light cameras have been labeled unconstitutional, but that hasn’t stopped many cities from using them.

In this section, we cover whether Abilene does, along with the major highways in the area and those all-important road trip destinations.

Let’s take a drive on I-20. It’s time to explore the infrastructure of The Friendly Frontier.

– Major Highways

Abilene is surrounded by interstates and highways and some major farm-to-market roads.

Those 14 major highways and farm-to-market roads account for 3,376 total miles in the United States.

Five of those farm-to-market roads, which are roads connecting agricultural areas to market centers (where the customers are), which are often in cities or towns.

Given that Abilene was, and still is to an extent, an agricultural hub, this makes sense.

Fortunately, just one of these roads is a toll road — I-10, around Houston. However, Texas has 25 toll roads, more than any other state. You’re bound to encounter one.

So what options do you have when you do? There are four in Texas — three tag options and one license plate photo option.

All roughly start the same, typically with a $20 prepaid toll deposit and a fee for the tag, which varies. You can generally use all of them throughout the Texas toll roads.

However, some are more heavily concentrated in specific areas: TollTag in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metro, EZ Tag in Houston, and TxTag around Austin.

They’re all fairly interchangeable throughout the state.

ZipCash is the license plate photo service. The tag sites say ZipCash can cost as much as 50 percent more than the tags, but it could be more convenient.

– Popular Road Trips/Sites

Got a day to kill and a full tank of gas? Try these four day-trip destinations (the distance in parenthesis is one-way).

• Texas Hill Country (208 miles): With everything from vineyards to state parks, Texas Hill Country is (mostly) an escape from the city life into the frontier, where small towns and nature matter more than skyscrapers and hundreds of thousands of automobiles. Sip wine at Fall Creek Vineyards, float down the Guadalupe River, dance in Gruene Hall, and get a glimpse into a simpler way of life.

• Big Bend National Park (353 miles): Encompassing over 800,000 acres, Big Bend National Park is home to many florae, fauna, and even ancient bones. Hike in the Santa Elena Canyon, soak in the hot springs, take a trip to the Mexican village of Boquillas, and have fun. Big Bend National Park has a little something for everyone. Watch out for the dinosaur bones!

• Austin, Texas (217 miles): Austin is a city on the rise: a booming economy, many food trucks and restaurants, a liberal drinking policy, and many, many weird things. Whether you’re checking out the flight of Mexican free-tailed bats from Congress Avenue Bridge or playing chicken (poop) bingo, Austin brings high energy and fun.

• Dallas, Texas (181 miles): Home to the Cowboys and the headquarters of numerous major companies, Dallas has everything someone could want in a big city — arts, science, technology, theatre, and more. Check out The Texas Theatre, visit the Dallas Museum of Art, and get a view of Dallas from the Reunion Tower. Dallas has culture, food, and fun.

– Does Your City Use Speeding or Red-Light Cameras?

The good news: no, at least not since 2013, according to BigCountryHomepage.com.

They were far ahead of the game, as it wasn’t until 2019 that Texas outlawed red light cameras, likely due to either the fact that they were ineffective or unconstitutional.

When it came to ineffectiveness, there had been numerous complaints across Texas for years, including being stuck waiting to turn when the light turns red. There were many more.

This guy certainly has something to say:

– Vehicles in Abilene

Imagine this:

You’re driving down I-10, minding your own business, listening to one of Abilene’s finest, Aaron Watson, when you give the car just a little bit of gas.

As you do, you suddenly notice a dark shape lurking near an overpass. You slam on the brakes, but it’s too late: the radar gun got you. As you pass, the cop’s lights turn on. Turns out, that wild horse couldn’t run far.

Speed traps are costly — in terms of time, money, and annoyance. Where are they, and how do you avoid them? This section answers that, and a lot more besides.

Keep that engine running. We’re going to navigate some of Abilene’s streets for danger zones.

– How Many Cars Per Household

The average American city tends to have many households with two cars, with an even split between one and three.

How does this look for Abilene?

Around a majority of households have two cars, with the next-largest category being one car, then three.

A higher percentage of households own two cars or fewer than the typical American city, with fewer households owning three or more.

– Households Without a Car

Being without a car can mean mobility challenges: having to take public transportation or borrow someone’s car to get around.

Generally, not having a car affects households below the poverty line the most, according to the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA).

So what is the percentage of households without a car in Abilene?

In 2016, 8 percent of households were without a car, compared to 5.4 percent in 2015.

Although there is not an available direct cause, possible causes include a rise in the poverty level, rising car maintenance issues (gas, repairs, insurance), and other factors.

As the FHWA writes, “The high sticker price of vehicles, increased prices at the pump, and transit fare hikes all pose a financial burden to the mobility of all households, especially those in poverty.”

Although that source is dated (2014), its information is still accurate to a large extent; we deal with expensive transportation here in the United States.

– Speed Traps in Your City

Back to those speed traps. Wouldn’t it be great to know where the cops are, what intersections or areas, so that you can avoid them?

We’ve got you covered. SpeedTrap.org is a site where users (people in the community) can submit speed traps they’ve run across (or heard about).

These speed trap submissions then get verified or discredited through a voting system.

The good news: Abilene is not listed in The 10 Worst Texas Speed Trap Cities. Even better: There are only 18 speed traps listed for Abilene, all dating back years ago.

Still, cities don’t often change and neither do their speed traps, so it might be helpful to take a look at three of the most recent.

Fm 89 south of Fm1235:

“The speed limit goes from 70 to 55 to 40 mph as your enter Buffalo Gap from the north. The officer will sit across from “The Cafe” once you enter the 40mph zone.”

N. 7th and Grape:

“There is a cop there at night a lot of times with his lights off just waiting for you to run the light or be speeding. The cops tend to be on Grape Street a lot between N. 4th and N. 18th during the day.”

Between the S.14th Exit and Lawrence Hall Chevy/Hartford St.:

“The APD likes to sit in the Lawrence Hall parking lot during hours that the lot is closed and radar down the service road and up on 83/84. If the lot is open sometimes they will sit in the 7-11 parking lot.”

Those are just three of the first four. Other more recent ones include Highway 277, Pioneer Street, and Highway 351.

– Vehicle Theft in Abilene

Getting your car stolen can be stressful. Not knowing when you’ll get your car back, if you’ll get it back, losing a sense of safety . . . these are big issues.

The following information in this section comes from NeighborhoodScout, which uses FBI data culled from over 18,000 law enforcement agencies around the country.

All statistics are for the calendar year 2017.

So, what are the odds your car will be stolen in Abilene?

There were 261 motor vehicle thefts in Abilene in 2017, for a rate of 2.14. This means that you have a 2.14 chance in 1,000 to have your car stolen.

It is a little less than the United States average of 2.37. So, motor vehicle theft rates and total crimes in Abilene aren’t that bad — but what about total crimes?

There were 4,378 total crimes (646 violent, 3,732 property) for a total rate of 35.92. You essentially have a 36 in 1,000 chance of being a victim of crime in Abilene.

That’s a 5.3 in 1,000 chance for violent crime; 30.62 chance for property crime.

So, what are the total crimes and rates for violent crime in Abilene?

Overall, the murder rate is lower than the U.S. national average; however, the robbery and assault rates are higher. What do you if you’re looking to avoid crime?

NeighborhoodScout has a list of the safest neighborhoods in town; moving there might lead to less likelihood of violent or property crime.

1. Dub Wright Blvd / Jennings Dr
2. Wylie
3. Elmdale
4. Private Rd / County Rd 341
5. Red Oak Cir / Stonecrest Dr
6. Impact
7. Dub Wright Blvd / Hartford St
8. Oldham Ln / Waters Edge Dr
9. S 1st St / S Willis St
10. Brookhollow Dr / S 20th St

And if you’re very concerned about motor vehicle theft, this guy has some tips:

– Traffic

You know the feeling when you’re on your way to work, there’s a meeting at 9 a.m., and you hit a wall of traffic on the Interstate.

The clock is ticking, your head is pounding, and your anger level is increasing. It’s rush hour traffic, right when you needed a clear freeway.

Rush hour traffic (and traffic in general) can be frustrating, difficult, and annoying. It can lead to a missed meeting, missed appointments, lost time, and lost money.

We understand. We feel your pain.

In this section, we’ll answer the question about traffic in Abilene, along with other crucial topics like how good the drivers in Abilene are and how safe the roads are.

Bear with us, we know this is a lot of information.

Get ready to give it some gas. Let’s not get stuck.

– Traffic Congestion in Texas

The good news: two of the three major traffic tracking organizations—TomTom and INRIX — don’t have Abilene listed in their traffic indexes.

The third, Numbeo, has information about Abilene (though it’s just with seven contributors); it’s worth taking a look.

Numbeo relies on user data for its indexes and has five total: a traffic index, a time index, a time experience index, an inefficiency index, and a CO2 emission index.

Overall, a trip in Abilene will take an average of 14.17 minutes. The time experience index is 14.17 minutes as well. The inefficiency index is 37.98, which is lower than some other cities.

This holds for the overall traffic index; there doesn’t appear to be much traffic in Abilene, lowering the overall statistics for driving, experience, and inefficiency.

– Transportation

The commute statistics from Data USA back this up.

The average commute time in Abilene is 15 minutes, which is around 10 minutes lower than the national average of 25.1 minutes.

Most of the commute times are between five minutes and 19 minutes, with very few being longer than 24 minutes.

Most Americans drive to work alone. How does this stack up for Abilene?

Abilene is fairly aligned with the national averages; slightly more Abilene residents drive to work alone and carpool than average, while almost none use public transport.

Working from home and walking are about average.

– How Safe Are Abilene’s Streets and Roads?

Accidents happen and they sometimes lead to fatalities. How safe are Abilene’s roads?

In this section, the data comes from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). It takes information about fatal crashes and categorizes them based on crash type.

Because Abilene has two counties — Taylor and Jones — and we took a look at fatalities for both counties. For the comparison, it’s important to look at population data.

• Taylor County population: 135,371
• Jones County population: 19,969

We’re going to take a look at nine categories, including total fatalities.

Overall, fatalities have been declining in Taylor County. Jones County has a higher amount of fatalities compared to Taylor County, based on the population level.

Again, the same trend: fatalities declining in Taylor County and Jones County have more than its population would indicate.

As Taylor County’s fatalities here decline toward the end, Jones County’s rises.

Single-vehicle accidents are often associated with roadway departures, which often happen in rural areas.

There is a much bigger percentage difference here between Taylor County and Jones County.

Like with single-vehicle accidents, Taylor County and Jones County are much closer here based on their respective population sizes.

Part of the reason — perhaps behind them both — is those roadway departures (which are often single-vehicle crashes) often happen in rural areas, according to the FHWA.

FHWA writes, “Roadway departure crashes are a major problem on all public rural roads. Nationally, 50 – 60 percent of them happen on State networks. That means more than 40 percent occur on locally owned roads, off the State highway system.”

They lay out a plan to keep drivers in their lanes, reduce the potential for crashes if they leave their lanes, and minimize the severity of crashes if a crash does occur.

It’s a major issue and, as Jones County’s population is so low, is most likely very rural.

There’s a huge difference in the number of fatalities for Taylor County versus Jones County for intersection-related accidents, which makes sense, as Jones County probably doesn’t have as many intersections as Taylor County.

Without the spike in 2015 for Taylor County, fatalities with passenger cars generally stay even for both counties, though there’s a slight rise at the end for Jones County.

Again, staying about level, Taylor County has many more pedestrian fatalities than Jones County.

There’s a low total (a zero for Jones County) for both for pedal cyclist deaths.

The NHTSA also categorizes fatalities according to road type. The following data is from its FARS encyclopedia for the state of Texas.

The majority of crashes happened on arterial roads, which are roads that funnel traffic around a city and connect traffic to interstates and highways.

There are principal arterials and minor arterials.

According to the FHA, “These roadways serve major centers of metropolitan areas, provide a high degree of mobility and can also provide mobility through rural areas.”

And about minor arterials, they say “provide service for trips of moderate length, serve geographic areas that are smaller than their higher Arterial counterparts and offer connectivity to the higher Arterial system.”

These roads require a lot of turning, speeding, stopping, and other cognitive demands that could lead to more accidents. They also traffic a high amount of people.

There were just four railroad incidents in Taylor County for five years (2012 – 2016) (Jones County had zero). The data comes from the U.S. Department of Transportation.

All were freight trains, with two happening on the same highway — T&P Lane. On the other side of the accident, the drivers were in four different vehicles.

There was one injury and one death.

– Ridesharing

Ridesharing is a good way to get around if you don’t have a car or are looking to have a fun night out without the danger of driving inebriated.

So what are the ridesharing options in Abilene?

These numbers come from RideGuru, which calculates rates for all available ridesharing services in a town, city, or area.

For this scenario, we looked at a hypothetical trip from the Abilene Regional Airport to The 12th Armored Museum, about six miles away. The results revealed just two services.

• Uber X | $19
• Lyft | $20

If you want to get around Abilene without a car, these are your options.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RK4cQh1FQnk

– E-star Repair Shops

When you purchase insurance through Esurance.com, you get access to its E-star Direct Repair Program, where you’re matched with a high-quality automotive repair shop.

There is just one option in Abilene.

With the E-star Direct Repair Program, you can see photos of the progress being made on your car.

– Weather

Weather in Texas is generally seen as hot and humid in the summer, with short and mild winters. How does this stack up with Abilene?

There’s a 23-degree difference between the annual high and low, with the average temperature around 65 degrees.

There are 243 sunny days on average in Abilene, which is 38 more days than the average U.S. city. There are also 25 inches of rain each year.

The following data on disasters comes from City-Data.com.

The number of natural disasters in Taylor County (15) is near the U.S. average (13). A sitting president declared seven of the 15 disasters major disasters.

Six emergencies were also declared.

There were six causes of natural disasters: Fires, 6; Floods, 5; Storms, 5; Hurricanes, 3; Tornadoes, 3; Tropical Storm, 1. Disasters can be assigned to more than one category.

– Public Transit

The main public transportation system in Abilene is CityLink, which is a bus service. It has 12 routes during the week and seven routes on Saturday.

Fares are fairly straightforward: $1.50 for adults, $1 for youth (aged 5 – 18), free for preschoolers and transfers, and 65 cents for seniors, the disabled, or those on Medicare.

Days passes are $3 for all groups (except for preschoolers) with costs staggered for the 7-day and 31-day passes.

CityLink does door-to-door service for the disabled and curb-to-curb service for people at night ($6 charge for the evening service).

Nothing on its website suggests there is a Sunday bus service.

– Alternate Transportation

If you want to go a short distance but don’t want to walk, you can always use a technology that has become more popular in the last year: the electric scooter.

According to the BigCountryHomepage.com, Bird launched its electric scooters in late 2018 on a college campus. Rides are $1, with extra for distance.

There’s no information about whether any of the other companies — Lime especially — have launched there.

Military/Veterans

Being a military service member can be stressful; the long hours, the difficult work, the possibility of deployment. But you know what shouldn’t be stressful?

Finding your car insurance.

That’s why we, here at TexasCarInsurance.com, have put in this section. It covers topics like how many veterans in the area served in which conflicts and military discounts.

And that all-important company that only you can use — USAA.

– Veterans by Service Period

Usually, the largest group of veterans in the average United States city have served in Vietnam, with the second Gulf War in second place and the first Gulf War in third.

How does this stack up in Abilene?

In Abilene, those three are the top three categories, but the populations are broken down differently.

• Second Gulf War (2001 – present): 3,343 veterans
• Vietnam: 2,297 veterans
• First Gulf War (1990s): 1,430 veterans

Generally, Texas has more veterans of the second Gulf War, possibly because of the proximity of military bases. And Abilene metro has one — in Dyess.

– Military Bases Within an Hour

Dyess Air Force Base opened in 1942, then called the Abilene Army Air Base. It was named after Lieutenant Colonel Dyess, who survived the Bataan Death March.

Today, it is home to the 7th Bomb Wing and the 317th Airlift Wing, both of which are distinguished throughout history. As the base website writes about the 7th BW mission,

“Deploy, sustain, maintain and employ the proven and emerging combat capability of the B-1 to combatant commanders for employment worldwide.”

And its mission statement,

“Provide Combat-Ready Forces To: Feed The Fight And Kill Targets . . . Anytime and Anywhere!”

It is also home to the Air Force Global Strike Command and the Air Mobility Command.

– Military Discounts by Providers

In Texas, for the companies listed, only Geico offers a discount, for active and retired personnel.

Nationwide is planning to offer a discount soon.

– USAA Available in Texas

However, service members have access to an insurance company that (almost) no one else does: USAA, which typically has some of the best rates around.

In Texas, USAA has the lowest overall premium, $400 lower than the nearest competitor and a full $3,000 lower than the most expensive competitor (Allstate).

In terms of percentage, it is 38 percent lower than the average premium. And according to J.D. Power, it has the best customer satisfaction rating in Texas.

USAA is not only for service members; service members who have a plan with USAA can also add immediate family members, such as spouses and kids.

Unique City Laws

Every city has unique laws. For instance, Abilene has a law where it is illegal to idle or loiter within the corporate limits of a city to flirt or mash.

Here we cover four sections of laws that affect nearly everyone. From cell phones to very small houses, onward we go.

– Hands-Free Laws

In 2017, Texas passed a bill called HB 62, which prohibited the sending, writing, and reading of electronic messages on a mobile device while driving, banning texting and driving.

Said TxDOT director James Bass at the time,

“We are pleased the Texas Legislature recognizes the extreme danger caused by texting and driving. The new law sends a very clear message to Texans to put down their phones and focus on the road.”

This was the final step in a years-long process, with the first texting and driving bill being vetoed in 2011 by then-governor Rick Perry.

Although the bill has its fair share of loopholes — some lawmakers have said it is impossible to enforce — lawmakers still said it was necessary to get it through the legislature.

Currently, the fines are $25 – 99 for a first-time offense and $100 – $200 for repeat offenders.

All hand-held mobile device use is prohibited in school zones, and all mobile device use is prohibited for people under 18, including hands-free usage, unless it is an emergency.

– Food Trucks

Food trucks (as of the writing in 2015) had been growing popular, with Abilene Scene making note of the rise in food trucks due to the influx of chefs coming to Abilene.

There were 20 at that time and the possibility of growing more, which city of Abilene was starting to accommodate in talks about adding a couple of food truck courts.

Today, the city of Abilene has a resource on its website that details what a new food truck enthusiast needs to do (legally) to be able to operate.

Here is the document for the mobile food truck establishment requirements. Some of the requirements are based on vehicles, with other requirements based on food prep.

Vehicle requirements:

“Floors, walls and ceilings shall be constructed of smooth, durable, non-absorbent surfaces that are easily cleaned”

And:

“All outer openings shall be properly screened against the entrance of insects. Screening is to be at least 16 mesh to 1 inch. Each exterior door shall be equipped with a self-closing device.”

Food prep requirements:

“Food shall be in sound condition, free from spoilage, filth or other contamination. All food shall be prepared onsite or come from an approved source . . .”

And:

“Condiments provided for customer’s use including onions, relish, sauces, peppers, catsup, mustard, etc., shall be dispensed as single-serve packets or from squeeze-type containers”

There is also an application attached to the requirements; one of the items needed is a health permit number.

– Tiny Homes

There’s little to see when researching tiny homes in Abilene (there’s one news article about a bunch being built, but the page now redirects to a money grab).

A search of the city’s website (Abilene’s code isn’t uploaded to Municode) reveals just one mention of a tiny home, under the name of accessory dwelling unit:

“Number of Dwelling Units per Lot. There shall be a maximum of one (1) dwelling unit per lot, with the exception of accessory dwelling units which may otherwise be permitted by this LDC.”

So, it certainly appears legal.

However, as NOLO, a legal authority, notes, building a tiny home on your property depends on numerous factors.

• First, a great deal depends on the zoning of your property, which is controlled by the city.
• Second, what the tiny home’s use will be is important. A residence has different regulations than an art studio.
• Finally, what you build it on matters. A tiny home on wheels is generally called a recreational vehicle.

Getting to know your city’s code or asking your counselor/city planner is also a good idea.

– Parking Laws

Like with tiny homes, there’s isn’t much available as far as information regarding parking laws in Abilene.

KTXS12 notes that as of 2013, it is illegal to park on your lawn. As of 2012, scooters and bikes may not be parked in the right-of-way.

And there’s a long ordinance on parking meters. An excerpt:

“No person shall park a vehicle in any such metered parking lot or parking space for a consecutive period of time longer than the limited period of time for which parking is lawfully permitted in the parking meter zone…”

That’s about it.

Abilene Car Insurance FAQs

– What Happens if I Get Into an Accident in Abilene?

Texas is considered an at-fault state, meaning that if you are found at fault in an accident, you are held liable for all property damage and medical bills of the other driver and their passengers.

Generally, this means your insurance company will pay for the damages and bills; however, if they exceed your coverage limits, you’ll be required to pay out of pocket for the rest.

– What Is the Cost of Living in Abilene?

According to PayScale, living in Abilene is 4 percent lower than living in the United States as a whole. Housing and transportation are 10 percent cheaper and utilities cost 9 percent more.

Groceries costs are about even, with a loaf of bread costing $3.33 while a carton of eggs $1.81. Overall, a person moving from Dallas would need around 5 percent less salary to maintain their standard of living.

– What Is the Minimum Insurance Coverage in Texas?

Texas minimum car insurance — what you need to legally drive — is 30/60/25 insurance: $30,000 for the injuries of one person, $60,000 for the injuries of more than one person, $25,000 for property damage.

These are all liability insurances — bodily liability and property damage liability. However, you can always add more coverages like collision and comprehensive for additional protection.

– What Is There to Do in Abilene?

Abilene, since its inception, has transformed itself from a small agricultural town to a modern city complete with arts, museums, and cultural attractions.

There’s the Morgan Jones Planetarium with exhibitions on moon rocks, space suits, and telescopes. There’s Fort Phantom Hill, a historic site. And there’s the Abilene Zoo, just to name three. There is also a downtown historic district with historic buildings.

– I’m a High-Risk Driver. How Do I Get Insurance in Abilene?

In Texas, if you are a high-risk driver, you may be required to get an SR-22, which is a form of financial responsibility or proof of insurance. This is purchased through insurance companies, who may charge extra, as you are considered a risk from your previous driving history.

If you can’t get one through the marketplace, you can try the Texas Automobile Insurance Plan Association. It is a last-ditch market.

– Why Is Abilene the Storybook Capital of Texas?

As the story goes, Abilene has a long history of celebrating children’s literary books. They created the first museum dedicated to children’s literary works, then created sculptures of popular children’s works’ characters in downtown Abilene. They started an annual children’s literary works festival.

In 2015, the legislature of Texas named it the Storybook Capital of Texas, for good reason.

Okay! You now have enough information to make an informed decision about car insurance in Abilene. Clear eyes, full hearts. Happy driving.

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