Traffic Deaths Up in the First Half of This Year Compared with 2011

Although last month was tied for the tenth safest month of June in terms of traffic deaths since World War II, the number of fatalities for the first six months of this year was still approximately 15 percent higher than during the same period last year.

According to preliminary statistics from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT), 266 people have died on Wisconsin roads in 2012 as of June 30, including 42 motorcyclists, five motorcycle passengers, 16 pedestrians, and three bicyclists. That compares with 230 traffic fatalities during the same period last year. Traffic fatalities at the end of June also were one more than the five-year average for the first six months of the year.

Last month, 61 people were killed in 56 crashes in Wisconsin, which were nine more deaths than in June 2011 and four more than the five year average for the month of June. The safest month of June in terms of traffic deaths since World War II occurred in 1946 with 45 fatalities and the deadliest was in 1956 with 115 fatalities.

“There’s no better time than right now to stop this recent increase in traffic fatalities,” says State Patrol Major Sandra Huxtable, director of the WisDOT Bureau of Transportation Safety. “Law enforcement officers around the state are out in force this summer to deter speeding, distracted driving, and drunken driving as well as ensure drivers and passengers are buckling up. For instance, 120 law enforcement agencies are receiving federal funding to put more officers on patrol for the Summer Heat speed enforcement mobilization that runs to July 18. But they can’t do it alone. Everyone needs to take responsibility for their safety and the safety of others on the road. We all have to do our part.”