Montgomery County’s Annual Vision Zero Initiative report has shown that serious and fatal crashes have dropped by 11% since the 2015-2019 period. According to a press release, the drop was a 28% drop in serious and fatal crashes in high-injury network corridors, the areas the county targets the most.
The high-injury network corridors remain the main focus this year. The county believes that 41% of serious and fatal injuries occur on just three percent of the county’s roads. To address this, the county has 10 projects currently underway in these areas to limit the dangers for all.
These high-chance zones are not the only ones to see new additions. In an attempt to meet the county’s goal of zero traffic deaths by 2030, the Vision Zero Action Plan has seen many upgrades in road safety. Some of the key projects include 259 engagement events across the county, the closing of the Noah’s Law loophole, and over 360,000 automated speeding citations.
“While there is much work to be done to reach the ultimate Vision Zero goal, City, County and State agencies are dedicated to making our streets safer by design,” said Wade Holland, the county’s Vision Zero coordinator.
While the deaths of motorists are declining, not all news is good. Pedestrians continue to be struck at a high rate, with over 400 people hit by cars in the first ten months of this year. To remedy this, the county looks to make sweeping changes to protect pedestrians. Among them are eight traffic signals with pedestrian hybrid beacons, 29 new bikeway projects, and almost seven miles of new sidewalks.
Photo Courtesy of Montgomery County Vision Zero.
