A group of officials from various state and federal agencies has pinpointed the leading causes of traffic deaths in West Virginia and is recommending ways to reduce them.
In a draft report released recently, the state Highway Safety Management Taskforce analyzed specific categories of drivers and road conditions that cause the highest numbers of fatal crashes or serious injuries.
By 2010, the taskforce wants to see fewer than 300 traffic fatalities per year.
Over the last few years, fatalities on West Virginia's roads have averaged 402 per year, the report found. Serious injuries resulting from crashes averaged about 7,489 per year.
Traffic deaths have fallen over the last 30 years, but experts see a leveling off in West Virginia and other states, indicating stagnant progress in prevention measures.
The taskforce found that most fatalities involved drivers leaving their lane, alcohol, drivers not wearing seat belts, long emergency response times, heavy trucks and aggressive driving.
"Mostly what we looked at are areas that would have high impacts on fatal crashes," said Cindy Cramer, a traffic safety engineer with the state Division of Highways who chaired the taskforce.
Overall crash data collection and sharing among state agencies also has to improve for a better picture of the problem, the taskforce found.
Legislation passed in 2005 by the U.S. Congress stipulated that all states have a safety plan in place to cut down on road deaths and injuries. If a state doesn't comply, its federal transportation funding will remain the same as it was before the law passed.
In West Virginia, the leading cause of fatalities has consistently been vehicles leaving the roadway and striking other cars or fixed objects, the taskforce report says. Cramer attributed this to the state's hilly terrain and curvy roads.
Lane departures accounted for about 42 percent of all injuries and 78 percent of deaths, the report said.
Highways officials already have placed about 70 miles worth of wire barriers in the medians of troublesome roads to prevent wayward vehicles from crossing into oncoming traffic. Cramer said the wire barriers are cost-effective and cause less damage than a concrete barrier when a vehicle strikes it.
Also, paving contracts now include stipulations that gravel shoulders be paved whenever possible for better traction, Cramer said.
Some other recommendations for change include increasing the use of rumble strips; putting center turn lanes on high-volume routes; removing troublesome fixed objects along roads; and addressing bad curves.
Drunken driving was linked to 36 percent of all road fatalities and 14 percent of injuries, the report says.
Federally funded DUI patrols have cut the state's drunken driving deaths by 31 percent since 2002, the report said. But the state's drunken driving fatality rate remains 5 percent higher than the national average.
A committee of lawmakers this year has been looking at revamping the DUI law, including provisions for more severe penalties for drivers with very high blood-alcohol levels and expanded use of ignition interlock systems, which prevent drunken drivers from starting vehicles.
The taskforce also recommended holding bar operators more accountable and passing a statewide law banning open alcoholic beverage containers from vehicles. Such bills have failed to pass in the last few legislative sessions.
The Division of Motor Vehicles also should reconsider rules associated with its administrative hearings on drunk drivers' licenses, the taskforce said. These hearings often result in a drunk driver getting his or her license back because of technicalities.
State officials also should consider creating a special court system for DUI cases, the taskforce believes.
Unlike many states, West Virginia law has no definition of aggressive driving and, thus, no penalties for it. Other states have such laws to cut down on speeding, tailgating and general recklessness.
"It's one of those things that we don't have a lot of good data on right now," Cramer said.
The report cited studies showing that up to 60 percent of motorists believe aggressive drivers are a significant threat to their personal safety on the road. Both police and motorists believe it's a growing problem.
To quantify how many crashes could be attributed to aggressive driving, the taskforce came up with its own definition: people passing improperly, speeding, tailgating, changing lanes without signaling and disregarding traffic controls.
These behaviors were responsible for 14 percent of all traffic crashes, the report said. Aggressive driving was linked to 17 percent of injuries and 23 percent of traffic deaths over the last three years.
The taskforce also says the state should minimize work zones and traffic delays to diminish drivers' aggravations; use more speed monitoring trailers along the roads; and put up message boards along the highways to inform drivers of upcoming delays, something already in the works under a massive technology upgrade.
According to 2006 statistics cited in the report, 88.5 percent of West Virginians said they wear a seat belt when driving, a big increase from the 40 percent to 50 percent who said they did in 2001.
Still, nearly 41 percent of traffic deaths involved an occupant not wearing one, the report found.
West Virginia in 1993 passed a law that requires fines for drivers who don't wear seat belts. But police cannot stop drivers simply for not wearing a seat belt.
If lawmakers were to make failure to use seat belts a primary offense, usage would rise by 6 percent, the taskforce estimated. That would cut deaths by 18, serious injuries by 188 and economic losses to the state by $36.9 million, the report said.
The taskforce says the state should pass a primary seat belt law by July 2008.
Other recommendations include starting a program that encourages driving-age teens to use school buses; incentive programs for police officers who make enforcing seat belt laws a priority; upgrading the current law to require seat belt usage in the back seat; banning riders from the backs of pick-up trucks; and requiring helmet use for all-terrain vehicle riding.
Drivers with suspended or revoked licenses, younger drivers and older drivers are also problematic, the report found. Last year, 27 percent of all crashes involved a driver whose license had been sanctioned at some level.
Uninsured drivers also were involved in about 8 percent of crashes. The taskforce believes there's a connection between uninsured vehicles and reckless drivers.
Drivers between the ages of 15 and 25 as well as those over 65 accounted for a large percentage of total crashes.
Better driver evaluations by the DMV during license renewals; giving "hot sheets" to police that list drivers with suspended or revoked licenses; requiring insurance companies to electronically notify the DMV of insurance cancellations; and placing a total ban on the use of cell phones while driving could help, the report says.
The state also should ban ATVs from paved roads and keep a closer eye on motorcyclists' licenses, the taskforce said.
Emergency response times and services in rural areas also should improve. The report said two-thirds of all traffic deaths across the nation occur in rural areas because of delays in discovery of crashes and response time.
The taskforce says the state should increase the number of mile markers on rural roadways; address emergency services in areas where response times average 20 minutes; station emergency personnel and equipment in areas lacking them; and improve cell phone coverage across the state.
Crashes involving heavy trucks also were of concern, the report found. Between 2002 and 2005, a total of 245 motorists were killed in these types of crashes.
The state should better educate drivers on how to pass heavy trucks, the taskforce believes. It also should improve warning signs about truck tilting on bad curves; put in more rest stops and parking areas for weary truckers; increase truck inspections; expand the authority of the state Public Service Commission for compliance; and better educate police on how to spot truckers who are dangerously tired or not licensed.
A copy of the report can be found at the bottom of the state Department of Transportation Web site: www.wvdot.com.