Good News: Fatal automobile accidents in Washington State dropped in 2024 by 9.6% compared to 2023! Still, there remains a 36% increase from 2019. Why are the numbers so high? A recent article in the Seattle Times discusses what we’re doing wrong, and we also noticed particular trends with the onset of covid-19.
It’s no secret that excessive speed and impaired/distracted driving are common factors often leading to traffic fatalities. In fact, these factors contribute to over 3/4 of traffic fatalities. We also saw poor driving habits emerge in the summer of 2020 when there was less traffic on the roads, and those habits continue to linger. Speeding in particular has been the most common and preventable factor in fatal auto accidents. In the summer of 2020 drivers began speeding at a higher rate compared to pre-covid when streets were congested with normal traffic. As vehicle speeds increase, so does the potential for serious injuries and even death when a collision occurs.
Failure to buckle up and/or properly secure a child passenger restraint is another contributing factor affecting nearly 20% of the fatal collisions last year. Folks often think that making a short trip means there’s less risk of collision, when in fact, the opposite is true. The classic phrase, “the car doesn’t move until everyone is buckled” still sounds like good advice to us. https://www.jcooney.com/2024/07/why-do-most-crashes-happen-close-to-home-3/
Collisions that involved the death of a pedestrian were also at an all-time high in 2023 with 160, and this number unfortunately didn’t change drastically in 2024 (155). The majority of pedestrian accidents were in cities and densely populated areas. Some cities are turning to “road diets” and “traffic calming projects” to improve pedestrian and bicycle safety. The Washington Traffic Safety Commission has updated its “Target Zero” project to achieve the goal of zero deaths or serious injuries on Washington roads by 2030. This project and others are often designed to slow vehicles, reduce traffic counts and make pedestrians and bicyclists more easily visible to drivers.
Everyone using our roadways bears a responsibility to mitigate the risk of a collision. Only as a community can we create safer roads in Washington. Focusing on the act of driving, reducing speeds and wearing seatbelts can help. Still, accidents do happen. If you or a loved one has been injured in an auto accident or a wrongful death collision, we know how to navigate these difficult situations to get the compensation you deserve.