LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — Kentuckians are doing a much better job of driving safely, and the state’s transportation cabinet (KYTC) has the data to back that up.
In 2022 there were 744 fatalities on Kentucky’s highways, down from 806 in 2021 and the lowest number since 2019, before the pandemic when enforcement dipped a bit, which KYTC outlined in a recently concluded study.
“It shows that high visibility campaigns and enforcement does work,” said Bill Bell with KYTC.
But LED signs on the interstates, Public Service Announcements and issuing more summons can only go so far. There were many factors that led to Kentucky’s decline in auto-related deaths in 2022. Vehicle manufacturers are making more safety equipment standards such as, blind spot monitoring, lane assist, and front crash detection technology. Not everyone has those as we’re keeping older cars for longer nowadays, so Mr. Bell thinks it can take 15-20 years before everyone is operating cars with that kind of technology but what is on the roads now has, so far, helped.
“Those things are great and they do help,” Bell said, before adding, “but it does take some time to have that fleet turnover.”
Surprisingly the biggest dip in fatalities, Bell noted, was for those in the 16-24 age range.
“When I got my license, and maybe when you got yours, you had a 30-day waiting period until you got your full license. Now you wait 6 months, then another 6 months to get intermediate,” he said of the more stringent licensing process for new drivers.
Seat belt usage was up in 2022 as well, with a reported 91.6 percent of vehicle occupants using restraints, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
“Still the best thing you can do for yourself. Those work with airbags,” Bell stated.
Perhaps the most critical point Mr. Bell made had nothing to do with statistics, but everything to do with setting a good example when behind the wheel.
“We all have a responsibility, especially if you’re a parent driving your kids around. They are watching and they will do what you do,” he said.
