Fatalities for week lowest in three years, Kentucky now running behind last year’s total

Frankfort, Kentucky -Thanks to the success of the recent "Put the Brakes on Fatalities in Kentucky" week, the Bluegrass State is now running behind last year’s totals for the number of fatalities on Kentucky’s highways.

Thanks to the public for their efforts to slow down and obey traffic laws, 17 fewer people died on Kentucky’s roadways during the weeklong blitz between October 4 and 11. That is the lowest number of fatalities for that week since 2001. The number is much lower than the number of fatalities for that time period in 2003, when 28 people were killed in crashes.

"While we know we have more work to do to make Kentucky’s highways the safest in the nation, these numbers are encouraging," said Maxwell Clay Bailey, Secretary, Kentucky Transportation Cabinet. "Our new Highway Safety Management Executive Committee hopes to build on these numbers and work together with the public through education and law enforcement to continue bringing these numbers down."

As of October 21, the total number of persons killed on the state’s highways stands at 744, three behind the total on the same date last year of 747 people killed in fatal crashes.

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