Investigators work the scene of a fatal car crash on Jones Blvd and Flamingo Rd Tuesday, May 24, 2022.
Friday, Dec. 9, 2022 | 2 a.m.
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With fatal traffic collisions still trending above last year’s pace in Clark County, residents deserve to know why the streets remain so deadly and what policymakers plan to do about it.
A report released this week by the Nevada Office of Traffic Safety shed some light on the issue by mapping both the locations and causes of fatal collisions in the county.
Unsurprisingly, impaired driving was the most common cause, accounting for nearly half of all fatal collisions. But data showed speeding-related crashes and intersection crashes (which mostly occur when drivers run red lights) are also major contributors.
The year started with a tragic example of a deadly nonimpaired collision when a 59-year-old man with a long history of reckless driving blew through a red light at more than 100 miles per hour and struck several vehicles. A family of seven, including four children, were killed.
Countless other examples of nonimpaired crashes occurred among Clark County’s nearly 200 fatal collisions in 2022. And while cases like the one above point to the need for greater personal responsibility and accountability for unsafe driving habits, they also point to the need for rethinking the design of Southern Nevada’s roadways and traffic-related laws.
This summer, Smart Growth America, a nonprofit organization that advocates for safe, healthy, and prosperous neighborhoods, released a report entitled Dangerous by Design. In it, they used extensive data to show that roadway design is often more influential on driver behavior than regulations like speed limits. According to their website, “While speed limit signs may only be posted every few blocks or miles, the road’s design is ever-present, continually providing guidance and visual cues… When roads are wide and straight, lanes are wide and plentiful, and intersections are infrequent or non-signalized, people feel safe and comfortable driving faster — even when the speed limit is low.”
They found that arterial highways — roads designated by the state as highways but which are not limited-access and functionally serve as a city street — account for 60% of traffic-related deaths, making them the most dangerous types of roads.
In Clark County, arterial highways include Boulder Highway, Tropicana Avenue, Flamingo Road, Russell Road and Sahara Avenue — all of which are at or near the top of the list of most frequent corridors for deadly collisions in Clark County. Their long, wide, straight lanes encourage even sober drivers to speed up, shift lanes frequently and blow through traffic control signals.
Policy makers in Southern Nevada have the ability to help curb the epidemic of traffic collisions and make our streets safer for everyone who uses the roads and sidewalks.
By embracing programs like Vision Zero and the Complete Streets Initiative, entities like the Regional Transit Commission and Nevada DOT are already taking steps in the right direction.
But their success relies, in part, on our willingness to accept road designs that naturally calm traffic — even if they cost us a few extra seconds of travel time.
In Seattle, miniature traffic circles designed to force vehicles into slowing down when entering an intersection reduced traffic collisions in some locations by as much as 93%.
Narrowing lanes by restriping them or adding curb extension (also known as bulb outs) has been shown to reduce speeds by as much as 10%. And radar signs, flashing beacons, and other visual cues can reduce speed by as much as 30%.
All of these options are cost effective ways to calm traffic while creating additional space for pedestrian and bicycle safety corridors that promote healthier more active communities.
Yet these methods aren’t full proof. Reckless drivers will still exist, which is why Nevada lawmakers need to step up and ensure reckless drivers are held accountable.
Over the past five years, Nevada lawmakers took positive steps like banning texting while driving and requiring that all drivers arrested with a .08 blood alcohol concentration (or higher) use an ignition interlock device in their car for up to six months.
But more can be done, including extending the statute of limitations to ensure hit-and-run drivers cannot just wait out the clock on their crimes and increasing penalties on repeat speeding and reckless driving offenders — including license revocation for the egregious repeat offenders.
Southern Nevada residents deserve safe neighborhoods with streets that are treated as neither highways nor racetracks.
Personal responsibility is the linchpin of creating safer streets. But when individuals refuse to take responsibility for their actions and endanger others due to their carelessness and recklessness, policymakers should prioritize safety and accountability over speed or convenience — both in policy and design.
