Report: Traffic deaths increased across country
What suggestions would you make for safer roads in Yuma County?
Once again, there are more statistics making national headlines that we simply don’t like.
“Nearly 43,000 people were killed on U.S. roads last year, the highest number in 16 years,” the Associated Press reports.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration urged state and local governments, drivers and safety advocates to join forces in an effort to reverse the trend, the AP reports, noting that the figures are preliminary. Final numbers will be released in the fall.
But there’s one part of the AP article we found to be especially interesting.
Earlier this year, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said there was a plan for federal guidance as well as billions in grants under the new infrastructure law to “spur states and localities to lower speed limits and embrace safer road design such as dedicated bike and bus lanes, better lighting and crosswalks. The strategy also urges the use of speed cameras, which the department says could provide more equitable enforcement than police traffic stops,” the AP reports.
There’s a lot of money out there for this – $6 billion over five years, which is to be spent on local efforts to cut crashes and deaths, the AP notes.
There are a variety of ways such funding could be spent across Yuma County to improve our roadways and intersections.
There’s certainly been a push over the last few years for dedicated bike lanes, and we’ve lost too many cyclists to traffic accidents.
Some streets and roads could benefit from speed humps, similar to the ones added recently to Arizona Avenue or the ones found behind Yuma Regional Medical Center on Parkview Loop. Drivers all over Yuma County seem to be fond of racing through neighborhood streets – speed humps or other enhanced road design features would be great for slowing them down.
And there are several county roads out there with dark intersections that could benefit from enhanced lighting or flashing, lighted stop signs.
People tend to have strong opinions about traffic and their fellow drivers, so we would like to hear from you, readers. If Yuma County and its municipalities could access some of this funding for safer roads, how would you spend it? Is there a specific roadway or intersection you feel is most need of attention?
Let us know. Send in your ideas in a Letter to the Editor to letters@yumasun.com.