By Andy Brack, editor and publisher | With the fun of summer just around the corner, there soon will be the relaxation of vacations, influx of tourists, kids at home looking for something to do and the sticky, hot weather that we complain about but secretly mostly enjoy.
But with summer comes an annual rise in the frequency of traffic deaths in a state that’s grappling with how to make roads safer.
“The stretch from Memorial Day to Labor Day is commonly known as ‘The 100 Deadly Days of Summer,’” said S.C. Highway Patrol Sgt. Robert Beres. “We usually see more people die during that time than other times of the year.
“People go drinking on boats, but forget they have to drive home. A lot more people going on vacations, picnics, beach outings and other events outside involving alcohol. It boils down to people making the right decisions behind the wheel. Don’t drink and drive, obey the posted speed limits and don’t be ejected from life. Buckle up.”
Since 2007 when 1,077 people died on state highways, the traffic fatality rate generally has been dropping — until last year when 950 people died on state highways, an increase in 153 deaths over the previous year. One reason, experts say, was that more people were on roads because of less expensive gasoline costs. With more people on the roads, there are more accidents, which cause more fatalities.
As of May 12, 310 people have died on state roads, a drop of 22 deaths for the same time period from the year before. Some 95 of those who died were not wearing seatbelts, according to state data.
“After almost 23 years in the Highway Patrol, I’ve never unbuckled a dead person,” Beres said. “It doesn’t cost you anything. It takes two seconds to put on and there’s a good chance it will save your life.”
The top three things killing people on South Carolina’s roads are passengers not wearing seatbelts, speeding and driving under the influence of alcohol, Beres said.
“Alcohol plays a major factor in fatalities,” he said. “Historically, alcohol-related collisions have been over 40 percent in South Carolina. Last year at the Patrol, we arrested well over 14,000 people on DUI charges.
“We encourage the public to dial *HP (star-HP) to report drunk drivers. The public plays a vital role in assisting us in bringing down the traffic fatality rate.”
Beres also called on drivers to stop looking at smartphones when driving.
“Distracted driving, whether at 25 miles per hour or 70 miles per hour, is dangerous. At interstate speeds, you have less time to react,” he said, adding that if a driver spends 5 seconds looking away from the road at a text, the vehicle would have traveled the length of a football field in that time.
What else can be done?
“Everyone with a responsibility for road safety – the federal, state and local governments, law enforcement, vehicle manufacturers, safety advocates and road users – needs to reassess our efforts to combat threats to safety,” according to a statement by the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration released by Derrell Lyles of the U.S. Department of Transportation.
The S.C. Department of Public Safety runs a number of campaigns through the year to educate drivers — from Buckle Up South Carolina to Sober or Slammer traffic stops to the comprehensive, 95-page 2015-2015 Target Zero plan to lower fatalities. It includes a multitude of safety and education strategies to make roads safer.
But are there areas that state lawmakers could provide legislation to reduce the number of fatalities?
Yes, according to multiple sources. Proposals include physically improving roadways, enhancing already tough DUI laws, adopting motorcycle helmet laws, toughening seatbelt requirements for adults and children, boosting daytime visibility by requiring headlights to be always on, and reducing speeds on highways.
State. Sen. Larry Grooms, a Daniel Island Republican who chairs the Senate Transportation Committee, says fixing roads will do more than just about anything other than educating drivers to make traveling safer.
“I believe our higher-than-average fatality rates in South Carolina are largely due to the conditions of our roads,” he said, noting the poor quality of many rural highways. “You’re on a rural road. You hit a bunch of potholes and there’s no shoulder. And the only thing that stops you is a tree.”
During the current legislative session set to end early next month, the Senate wrestled with a way to steer more state dollars to fix the state’s crumbling road system. After rejecting a gas tax hike that most voters say they’re for, the Senate crafted a plan to leverage $200 million a year for the next 15 years in existing tax revenues to borrow about $2 billion through the state Transportation Infrastructure Bank to fix roads.
The funds, viewed by many as a half to a third of what’s really needed annually over time to bring state highways to acceptable levels, will be used to resurface and make safety enhancements, such as widening lanes and shoulders, Grooms said.
The House currently is considering the Senate plan and is expected to return it before the session ends. But because more money is needed, lawmakers likely will return to road funding debates next year.
“We’re not done, but there is at least, finally, an acknowledgement by most of the members of the General Assembly that we have to spend more money on our roads,” Grooms said.
“We’re going to have to spend more money on our roads for safety, the well-being and quality of life of people in our state. Then the grand argument is how are we going to do that — and there is not much consensus in General Assembly on how to do it in the long-term.”
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