Traffic fatalities in the 13-county Mid-Missouri region plummeted 24 percent from fatalities that occurred in 2006. If that trend holds up through the last days of December, that region will have the fewest traffic deaths in four years, the Missouri State Highway Patrol said.

Fatal crashes Fatal traffic accidents in Mid-Missouri are on track to reach the lowest total in four years.

Source: Missouri State Highway Patrol

Lora Wegman graphic

"Obviously, I’m happy about it," said Capt. Dale Schmidt of Troop F, the highway patrol unit that patrols those 13 counties, including Boone County.

"I’m hoping that the trend will continue through education and enforcement, that people will get the message that wearing your seat belt is important, ... that when there’s a little rain out there, leave early," he said.

In 2004, 92 people died in crashes in the Troop F area. Fatalities jumped to 106 in 2005 and reached 104 in 2006. This year, 79 people have died as a result of fatal crashes.

The change in Troop F resembles a statewide plunge in traffic deaths to 929 in 2007 from 1,050 last year.

"Do we want to maintain there or do we want to set a goal of 900 within two years?" Schmidt said. "This is what we need for the motoring public and the citizens of Missouri: We need you to slow down, wear your seat belt, think about what you’re doing on the road."

Schmidt attributed the trend to improvements on Interstate 70 by the Missouri Department of Transportation, which included "diamond cutting" the pavement surface, providing better traction. Schmidt said grooves cut in the pavement make it less likely for water to accumulate, reducing the likelihood of hydroplaning.

Schmidt also cited various enforcement actions around the region.

There were 39 such operations in Boone County that resulted in 911 arrests, highway patrol Lt. David Hall said. The operations ranged from aircraft flyovers in search of aggressive driving and speeding to DWI saturations. Hall said the frequency of enforcement efforts was comparable to past years’ actions.

Nine of the Troop F region’s 13 counties are showing fewer traffic deaths, the highway patrol said, with Callaway County recording the largest decrease: six traffic deaths this year compared to 14 last year. Gasconade County has had seven traffic deaths this year, compared to one last year.

In the last four years, the number of Boone County traffic deaths has fluctuated little.

Meanwhile, the total number of traffic accidents in Boone County is up, Hall said: 632 this year as of Wednesday compared to 575 in 2006 and 731 in 2005.

While 2007 traffic deaths have decreased, Hall acknowledged that the roads still await busy travel times before 2008 arrives.

"We do have two holiday seasons that are still yet to come in 2007," Hall said, referring to Christmas and New Year’s. "I want to predict that there’s zero accidents, zero fatalities. Is that going to happen? The probability is no, but that’s our wish."

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