POLK COUNTY, Fla. — Last 12 months was one of many deadliest years to be on roads in the Tampa Bay Area. Hillsborough, Pinellas, Manatee and Polk counties all noticed an uptick in deadly crashes in 2021.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, in 2021 U.S. roads have been the deadliest in current years. Nearly 43,000 individuals have been killed final 12 months, a ten.5% leap over 2020.
“Speeding is a big one and the other one is distracted driving,” stated Tricia Pichette with the Florida Department of Transportation.
The spike was even better in the Tampa Bay Area. According to knowledge from Signal Four Analytics. Hillsborough County noticed a 28% improve and in Pinellas a staggering 48% improve in deadly crashes. The Florida Department of Transportation stated a number of components are in charge, together with the variety of miles individuals drove in 2021 in comparison with the earlier 12 months.
In Polk County the variety of deadly car accidents jumped from 134 to 165. “We’re experiencing unprecedented growth. We’re one of the fastest growing areas in the country, let alone the state, so you’re also talking about a lot more people on the roadways,” stated Pichette.
FDOT Polk County division is engaged on making roads safer for drivers and pedestrians by widening lanes, elevated lighting and including roundabouts.
“The numbers are in, and it proves that roundabouts cut down on head-on collisions, they cut down on side collisions,” stated Pichette.
As we enter one of many deadliest holidays on our roadways AAA is reminding drivers of it’s Tow to Go program.
“It’s a service that’s free for AAA members and non-members. With this service we dispatch a tow truck out to move the would-be impaired driver and their car to a protected location inside a 10-mile radius, stated Mark Jenkins with AAA.