Delaware recently revealed its 2021-2025 Strategic Highway Safety Plan, a collaboration between the Delaware Department of Transportation (DelDOT), the Delaware Office of Highway Safety (OHS), the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the Federal Highway Administration, the Delaware State Police (DSP), and the Delaware Department of Safety and Homeland Security.
The plan was written after consulting advocacy groups and stakeholders and covers multiple topics, including distracted driving, impaired driving, intersections, motorcycles, pedestrians, roadway departure, speeding, traffic records, and unrestrained motorists.
The goal is to reduce traffic fatalities and serious injuries by 15 percent over the next five years and at least 50 percent by 2035.
“Safety is our number one priority,” Nicole Majeski, secretary of transportation, said. “We are committed to reducing fatalities and serious injuries on Delaware roadways. Working collectively with our partners, we can implement strategies and safety countermeasures to work towards our goal of zero deaths.”
More than 1,100 people died, and 5,600 people were seriously injured on Delaware’s roads since 2010. The highest number of fatalities occurred during 2015 and 2019, with 133 reported each year.
DelDOT, OHS, and DSP will hold a virtual public workshop on the plan on March 18.