Cape Girardeau County highway death toll up in 2021, Missouri could set 15-year fatality record

The Missouri Coalition for Highway Safety (MCHS) reported 15 people have died in traffic accidents in Cape Girardeau County through mid-December, up from 11 for all of 2020. Six of those fatalities have come in the city of Cape Girardeau, according to statistics found on savemolives.com.

In the 25-county Missouri Department of Transportation's Southeast District, 129 people have perished on roadways thus far this year, down from 141 for January through December 2020.

Statewide, 980 have died as of Dec. 19 compared to 987 for the full year of 2020 with MoDOT officials fearing 2021 may produce the highest fatality numbers since 2006.

Other county fatality figures thus far in 2021, as reported by MCHS:

• Bollinger: 1
• Madison: 2
• Mississippi: 1
• New Madrid: 2
• Perry: 6
• Scott: 7
• Stoddard: 3
• Wayne: 4

Trend

Highway fatalities in Missouri had been on a steady decline until 2020.

"Unfortunately, we're continuing to see the numbers move in the wrong direction with an increase in fatalities," said Nicole Hood, MoDOT's state highway safety and traffic engineer, to the Jefferson City News Tribune.

Missouri's all-time deadliest year on record is 2005, which had a total of 1,257 fatalities.

An average of three people die each day on Missouri's highways, Patrick McKenna, MoDOT Director.

Missouri is also seeing a rise in motorcycle fatalities.

In MoDOT's Southeast District, for example, 19 motorbike deaths have been recorded, up from 7 in 2020, a 171% increase -- according to figures provided in December's report of the Southeast Metropolitan Planning Organization (SEMPO).

Hood, in noting this year's year-to-date statistics, said Missouri is also witnessing a more dramatic trend among unhelmeted motorcycle fatalities.

The Missouri General Assembly removed Missouri's motorcycle helmet requirement for individuals 26 and older in August 2020.

"I can't say that that is the overall contributing factor, but we did have the repeal of the helmet law, and so we are seeing more unhelmeted motorcyclist fatalities," Hood said back in October.

Reduction efforts

MoDOT is continuing to promote the state's Strategic Highway Safety Plan, called the Show Me Zero plan, aimed at four areas of focus: buckling up, putting phones down, driving sober and slowing down.

"Those four contributing factors make up the largest percentage of the fatalities that we see on our roadways," Hood said. "For 2021, so far this year, we've had 66 percent of the fatalities, the folks were unbuckled."

A lack of seatbelt use and the prevalence of impaired driving remain issues across the state, said Capt. John Hotz, director of the Missouri State Highway Patrol Public Information and Education Division.

Roughly 25 percent of fatalities are the result of impaired driving, Hood added, and said the state is also seeing distracted driving becoming more common.

State Rep. Wayne Wallingford of Cape Girardeau (R-147) has pre-filed legislation in the Missouri House, which will convene Jan. 5, to end distracted driving for all motorists, regardless of age.

Currently in the Show Me State, drivers under the age of 22 are prohibited from using electronic wireless devices to text or send messages via social media platforms such as Facebook.