Safety group gives Pa. ‘yellow light,’ urges changes as traffic deaths rise

WASHINGTON — Fatalities in crashes on Pennsylvania highways rose an estimated 4.5% during the first six months of 2023 compared to the same period last year, and a traffic safety group on Tuesday listed a series of steps the state should take to reduce them.

The report by Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety gave Pennsylvania a yellow light for caution, crediting the state for steps such as banning texting while driving and allowing automatic speed enforcement. It urged state officials and lawmakers to allow police officers to pull over and ticket drivers and passengers solely because they’re not wearing seat belts, and to require all motorcyclists to wear helmets.

The group is urging state lawmakers to make permanent a pilot program that uses speed cameras in work zones. Motorists exceeding the posted speed limit by 11 miles per hour or more could face fines of as much as $150 for each violation.

Pennsylvania received a 5 on a scale of 0-12, depending on how many safety laws were enacted. It joined 33 other states in receiving caution, or yellow ratings, from Advocates, an alliance of consumer, health, law enforcement, and insurance industry groups.

Six states, including neighboring New York and Maryland, received good ratings, or green, for their safety laws. Ten others, none of which are located in the Northeast, had danger ratings, or red, for their lack of such laws.

The report was issued following preliminary estimates in September from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which found deaths in Pennsylvania traffic crashes increasing from 534 from January to June 2022 to 558 over the same period this year. That’s in contrast to a national decline of 3.3%, from 20,190 to 19,515.

“There is more urgency than ever to issue these proven solutions,” said Cathy Chase, the president of Advocates. “The solutions are outlined right here. … We need to get our lawmakers and regulators to get them over the finish line now. Otherwise, people will continue to die needlessly on our roadways, these proven solutions are lying dormant for no good reason.”