Traffic fatalities in Delaware this year already match last year’s total

With the vacation season underway, Delaware already has as many roadway fatalities as all of final 12 months.

Delaware has 139 site visitors fatalities this 12 months as of Wednesday afternoon after having 139 in all of 2021, and that was essentially the most fatalities since 2006.

The quantity might go significantly increased as final 12 months there have been 33 fatalities in November and December.

That’s as a result of final 12 months there have been 33 fatalities in November and December, prompting the Workplace of Freeway Security to launch its “Protected Household Vacation” marketing campaign.

That seeks to curb the main causes of vacation crashes – driving beneath the affect, dashing, and distracted driving – by encouraging drivers to make accountable decisions on the roads.

On high of the deaths, greater than 8,200 folks had been severely injured in crashes in 2021

DelDOT’s C.R. McLeod says driving beneath the affect is one main issue for the crashes.

“Medication and alcohol being a contributing consider a few third of all of our fatalities, and that is one thing we won’t stress sufficient if you are going to be consuming both please make plans so you do not have to drive,” mentioned McLeod. “What our actual message right here is we need to have folks keep away from changing into statistics themselves.”

McLeod notes dashing and inattentive driving are additionally components which may very well be contributing to greater than 30% of single automobile crashes this 12 months.

McLeod says it’s not solely drivers and passengers getting killed in automobile crashes.

“Thus far we now have had 28 pedestrian fatalities and that is up 20% over final 12 months. We have additionally seen a rise in bicyclists being killed on roads this 12 months as nicely. So, it is actually all modes of transportation have seen a variety of fatalities. We have had 21 motorcyclists killed on Delaware roads,” mentioned McLeod.

McLeod notes DelDOT has seen vital will increase in two-lane street crashes and automobiles drifting off the roadway.

Public security officers remind folks to put on seatbelts, by no means drive beneath the affect of medicine or alcohol, obey posted pace limits, and keep away from driving distracted or aggressively.