Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards joined the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development Secretary Shawn D. Wilson to discuss the Strategic Highway Safety Plan (SHSP) for the state.
Updated every five years, the SHSP identifies emphasis areas, strategies and tactics for reducing fatalities and serious injuries on public roads across the state. The plan is developed with input from safety experts, engineers, law enforcement personnel, emergency services providers and advocacy groups, the governor’s office said, and will be implement through ongoing activities by various stakeholders and state agencies.
Preliminary data indicates nearly 1,000 people died in motor vehicle crashes in Louisiana last year, a 17 percent increase from 2020. Last year saw 971 fatal motor vehicle crashes compared to 828 in 2020 – the highest percentage increase in one year since the department started keep records on fatalities.
“The statistics are alarming,” Edwards said. “The loss of nearly 1,000 motorists on our roadways is devastating and a number that desperately needs to decrease and be non-existent one day. With the safety strategies implemented by our agencies and safety partners, we aim to make all Louisiana public roads safer—where no one is killed or seriously injured in traffic-related crashes.”
Officials said the increase in fatalities was due to an increase in risky driving behaviors. To combat that, the La DOT said it would increase education efforts and community outreach programs statewide; strengthen laws and public policies around risky behaviors like distracted driving; increase accountability through enforcement and other methods; identify, develop and deploy engineering solution to reduce crash severity along some corridors; and increase the number of child passenger safety and CarFit technicians in the state.
“The safety of our roadways and our motorists is of the utmost importance of this Department and this Safety Plan provides quantitative data for strategies on improving the safety conditions throughout the state,” said Wilson. “With the support of the Governor and our partners on the federal, state, and local levels, we continue to work towards eliminating traffic-related deaths and injuries. One death is one too many and it is our goal to reduce the number of crashes and severe injuries by 50% by 2030.”