Connecticut's Roads More Deadly in 2006 Recent statistics from the Connecticut Department of Transportation and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) show that Connecticut traffic fatalities are on the rise after six years of steady decline. 325 people died in traffic crashes in Connecticut in 2006, up nearly 17 percent from 2005. "State transportation and policy officials can't take this trend reversal lying down -- it's time to start punishing dangerous behavior on the road," said Jon Orcutt, Executive Director for the Tri-State Transportation Campaign. Speeding and other forms of reckless driving are the primary cause of fatal traffic crashes, according to a Tri-State analysis of nine years of data from NHTSA's Fatality Analysis Reporting System. 70 percent of all traffic fatalities in Connecticut are caused, at least in part, by speeding and reckless driving. Speeding contributed to nearly one-third of fatal crashes in which a cause was recorded. "Failure to keep in proper lane or running off road" was cited in an additional 25 percent of crashes. "It's time for the state to clamp down on speeding and reckless driving," said Carol Leighton of the Connecticut Citizens Transportation Lobby. "The police need to increase their visibility on the roads and enforce traffic laws more aggressively." The recent appointment of Ralph Carpenter as Commissioner of ConnDOT bodes well for efforts to improve traffic safety. Commissioner Carpenter spent 25 years in Connecticut's Department of Public Safety and has first-hand experience dealing with traffic crashes. Pedestrian deaths more or less held steady in recent years, hovering around 35 fatalities per year since 2001. The number of pedestrian deaths has generally fallen over the past decade, from a high of 54 in 1997. Pedestrians also make up a significantly smaller share of total fatalities. In 1997, pedestrians accounted for nearly 16 percent of total statewide fatalities. By 2006, that rate had fallen to just over 11 percent. The welcome decline in pedestrian fatalities could actually be an indicator not of safer driving, but of fewer walkers on Connecticut's sidewalks. The percent of commuters walking to work has declined 46 percent from 1990 to 2005, and 26 percent in just the six years since 2000, according to Census data. Governor Rell's recent "Responsible Growth" initiative is a step in the right direction, but the state needs to do more to promote walkable communities. For example, the state should set aside a portion of Town Aid for Roads to encourage municipalities to implement traffic calming to reduce car-pedestrian crashes. Click here to download a state fact sheet with more detailed data. # # # The Tri-State Transportation Campaign is a policy watchdog organization working to reverse deepening automobile dependence in the New York/New Jersey/Connecticut metropolitan region. www.tstc.org.
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