Vote YES to Advance HB 192 to Improve Safety in Active Highway Work Zones
The Dangerous, Deadly and Costly Problem:
- In 2021, there were 806 fatalities on Kentucky roads.
- The Bluegrass State incurred $6.2 billion in economic harm due to motor vehicle crashes according to a 2019 analysis.
- Work zones are particularly dangerous. In 2022, 1,074 crashes occurred in Kentucky work zones, including 6 fatalities (4 were motorists) and 271 people were injured in these crashes.
- Small increases in speed lead to big increases in risk to drivers. Crash tests show that speed upticks of even five to ten miles-per-hour (mph) greatly escalate a driver’s risk of injury or death.
- Speed increases also immensely impact pedestrians and other vulnerable road users such as roadway workers. The average risk of death for a pedestrian is 10 percent at an impact speed of 23 mph, 25 percent at 32 mph, and 50 percent at 42 mph.
The Solution: Speed Safety Cameras
- Speed safety cameras are proven to deter speeding and its impact and are recommended for state and local adoption by both the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and the Federal Highway Administration (FWHA).
- A study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) found that speed safety cameras alone resulted in a 19 percent reduction in the likelihood that a crash resulted in a fatal or incapacitating injury.
- Speed safety cameras work especially well in scenarios like work zones. The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) found that speed safety cameras reduce fatalities and injuries by 20-37 percent and are particularly effective in school and construction zones.
- Pennsylvania implemented a pilot program for speed safety cameras in highway work zones and the program reduced overall speeding by 38 percent, excessive speeding by 47 percent, and crashes by 15-50 percent. The program was so successful that it was recently made permanent.
- Speed safety cameras augment traditional law enforcement without requiring an additional traffic stop.
- Enacting the speed safety camera pilot program in HB 192 will deter speeding in active highway work zones while providing much needed protection to vulnerable construction workers as well as drivers navigating though work zones.
Support HB 192 to improve safety and save lives on Kentucky roads!