2021 already a record year for traffic fatalities

To date, 35 radical person died connected Dane County roadways this year.

A drone captures East Washington Avenue midday adjacent the First St intersectionWISC-TV/Channel3000.com

MADISON, Wis. — Thirty-five radical person died successful Dane County crashes truthful acold this year, mounting a caller region grounds for postulation fatalities.

That’s according to a caller study shared Tuesday by the Dane County Traffic Safety Commission, which said the fig of postulation deaths truthful acold this twelvemonth has already passed 2020’s total. More than 75% of postulation deaths this twelvemonth happened successful the months of April, May, June and July.

“This is an contiguous nationalist wellness contented erstwhile it comes to postulation safety,” said Sgt. Dennis Sieren, Dane County Sheriff’s Office and co-chair of the Dane County TSC. “We are highly acrophobic astir the expanding fig of fatalities, contempt section efforts to amended safety. Too galore country families person mislaid a person oregon loved 1 nether tragic circumstances that could person been prevented.”

Seven of this year’s fatal crashes person progressive pedestrians, which TSC officials said is unusually high. Of those, six were successful Madison (five of which happened connected the East Washington Avenue corridor), and one was successful Sun Prairie.

The study noted that much than fractional of the fatal crashes progressive a operator driving nether the power of intoxicant oregon different drugs.

Cheryl Wittke, TSC co-chair and enforcement manager of Safe Communities of Madison – Dane County said the summation successful fatal crashes whitethorn beryllium owed to differing driving habits arsenic much drivers instrumentality to the roads.

“We’re not definite wherefore the important summation successful fatalities. One mentation involves however the behaviour of drivers changed during the tallness of the pandemic past year,” Wittke said. “Vehicle measurement was down significantly, and drivers accrued speed. Perhaps immoderate drivers accustomed to less vehicles connected the roads person not adjusted their velocity and afloat resumed antiaircraft driving skills arsenic roads became much congested.”

According to the report, speeding was a origin successful 8 of the crashes. There were 12 speed-related fatalities successful each of 2020, which was much than treble the magnitude successful 2019.

“The communal denominator for astir crashes is risky operator behavior,” Sieren said. “Everyone needs to beryllium much alert of their surroundings and much vigilant astir information threats.”

Last year, metropolis leaders announced the city’s Vision Zero initiative, which acceptable a extremity of having zero postulation fatalities by the twelvemonth 2030. In the aftermath of the caller bid of fatal crashes connected East Washington Avenue, Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway said she’s “fed up” with drivers breaking postulation laws connected the eastbound corridor.

The Vision Zero imitative includes measures similar reducing velocity limits, expanding visibility for crosswalks and expanding postulation enforcement. Just a fewer months aft the inaugural was announced, the metropolis lowered the velocity bounds connected parts of East Washington Avenue to 25mph.

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