Missouri road fatalities starting to trend downward

According to Missouri Coalition for Roadway Safety (MCRS) monthly statistics through June 5, statewide driving fatalities are down 2.5% so far in 2022, with 355 deaths year-to-date compared to 364 a year ago.

In the 25-county MoDOT Southeast region, 56 roadway deaths have been reported thus far in 2022, according to savemolives.com.

In the 13-county state Highway Patrol Troop E, which includes Cape Girardeau County, the total is 29 deaths for the period January through May.

The counties with the highest 2022 roadway death counts in the region are Mississippi with seven and Cape Girardeau and New Madrid, each with five.

Most of Mississippi County's roadway deaths occurred on Mar. 17, when on a fog-aided morning along Interstate 57 near Charleston five people perished.

In 2021, Missouri recorded 1,016 roadway fatalities, the highest level in 15 years.

"Deadliest days"

Jon Nelson, assistant to the state highway and traffic engineer for MoDOT, during May 24 remarks in Hannibal, Missouri, said the period from Memorial Day to Labor Day is considered the "100 deadliest days" of the year.

Initiatives

• Show Me Zero, part of the state's strategic highway safety plan to reduce traffic fatalities to zero, has four areas of emphasis: occupant protection, distracted driving, speed and aggressive driving and impaired driving, according to Missouri Coalition for Roadway Safety.
• Traction, a youth-driven effort to prevent traffic crashes, held a summer conference June 9-11 at Drury Conference Center in Cape Girardeau. During a 2018 Traction event, students from Notre Dame, Oran and Saxony Lutheran high schools were among participants from eight area districts who filled out questionnaires about traffic safety. All the district teams represented -- which also included students from New Madrid County Central, Twin Rivers, Union, Portageville and Malden -- identified improper seat belt usage as an issue for young drivers. Other issues noted in the survey: drinking and driving, distracted driving and driving recklessly.

According to MCRS data, 58% of those who have died in traffic crashes in the state thus far this year were not wearing seat belts.