Virginia traffic deaths continue to rise

Approximately 300 people in Virginia died in automobile-connected targeted traffic crashes in the 1st quarter of 2022, a roughly 72% increase from the similar period in 2021, according to preliminary estimates by the Countrywide Highway Visitors Basic safety Administration.

• The nationwide enhance for the very same time period was 7%, achieving an believed 9,560 fatalities — the best number of initial-quarter fatalities in 20 many years, NHTSA said in its report.

​​Why it issues: The new details suggests U.S. roads are becoming more and more deadly and that the region is on speed to have nonetheless another annual increase in traffic fatalities.

• Virginia had the 3rd-highest increase in the country in the early NHTSA estimates, released last thirty day period.

What’s taking place: Targeted visitors fatalities began rising nationwide for the duration of the pandemic even even though fewer folks were being driving and general site visitors mishaps dropped, Axios’ Joann Muller claimed.

• The men and women who were on the street tended to be disproportionately male and youthful (39 and below) and also engaged in risky driving conduct, an AAA review observed.
• 50 percent of the people who greater their driving throughout the pandemic claimed they were being rushing on household roadways and texting, though just about half documented functioning purple lights and changing lanes aggressively.
• They were being also extra probable to not be putting on a seat belt or to be under the impact of medicine or alcohol.

Zoom in: Past calendar year, 968 individuals died in Virginia in vehicle crashes, with velocity shown as the bring about for just about 50 percent of them, according to the Virginia Freeway Protection Office’s annual report.

• Not wearing a seatbelt was the next-main issue in fatal car or truck crashes, followed by alcoholic beverages.
• The breakdown of triggers was related for 2020, when 847 people today died on Virginia roads.

Hence considerably in 2022, 652 persons have been killed in car or truck accidents in Virginia, in accordance to the Website traffic Information Digital Database Procedure.

Roughly 80% of crashes come about on non-interstate roadways. These ended up the most superior-crash places in Richmond, according to facts from the Virginia Freeway Basic safety Office:

• Belvidere Street from Main to Leigh (around VCU and the interstate interchange) accounted for 46 crashes past year and 47 therefore much this calendar year.
• Commerce and Hull streets in Manchester observed 35 crashes very last yr and 14 so much this 12 months.
• Laburnum and Hermitage on Northside (wherever the AP Hill monument sits) recorded 22 crashes final year and 18 so much this yr.

Virginia’s Highway Protection Workplace has introduced a series of basic safety strategies in an try to maintain the roadways safer, the most current of which is a YouTube collection introduced in August called “Protected Driving Is Some thing We Can All Live With.”