High Five Rural Safety Project underway in Fremont County

DES MOINES – Fremont County is among five Iowa counties identified to participate in the High Five Rural Traffic Safety Project.

The new initiative launched Thursday with a focus on traffic safety for rural roadways.

The Fremont County Sheriff’s Office says the Governor’s Traffic Safety Bureau identified Fremont County as having higher-than-normal car fatalities in the past couple of years.

The county is also surveying with a lower percentage of seat belt use compared to other Iowa counties.

 

 The initiative includes a three-tier approach:

• Law enforcement
• Engineering
  
  
• Education

 

 

Amanda Woods of the safety bureau said law enforcement and county engineers in the “High Five” counties are safety advocates.

Woods: “Rural roads are unique because they are shared by a variety of vehicle types from passenger vehicles to large machinery and other farm implements traveling at slower speeds.”

The other four counties in the High Five are Humboldt, Keokuk, Mitchell and Appanoose. The initiative concludes on Sept. 30.

 

Here is the safety bureau press release: 

High Five Rural Traffic Safety Project to Begin

 

        

DES MOINES, IOWA – In 2021, 72% of fatal crashes in Iowa occurred on secondary rural roads.  Approximately 79% of Iowa’s total roadways are considered secondary in nature.  Due to these alarming statistics rural safety has become a major concern.

Beginning December 1, 2022, a new initiative identified as “High Five Rural Traffic Safety Project” will be launched to focus on traffic safety on Iowa’s rural roadways.  After reviewing 5 years of crash data and looking at counties with low seat belt compliance rates, the Governor’s Traffic Safety Bureau along with a multi-disciplinary team of traffic safety professionals selected five rural counties to participate in this project.

The counties participating in the project include Appanoose, Fremont, Humboldt, Keokuk and Mitchell.  The High Five project will involve a three-tier approach to include enforcement, engineering, and education with the ultimate goal to build a safer community.  Through enforcement, media, and community outreach, participating agencies will work to educate drivers on the benefits of complying with traffic laws with an emphasis on Iowa’s seat belt law.  From an engineering aspect, the focus will be to identify low cost safety improvements throughout the county. 

In the first 9 months on Iowa Road way there has been 255 fatalities.  This number may not seem high to you but, everyone is tragic and 255 is still too many.   In addition to fatalities, it is also important to recognize the number of serious injuries sustained in traffic crashes.   Law enforcement and county engineers within the High Five counties are conscientious safety advocates who understand rural roads are unique because they are shared by a variety of vehicle types from passenger vehicles to large machinery and other farm implements traveling at slower speeds.  The road surface types and speeds also vary.

Enforcement efforts on roadways with higher volumes are common but with Iowa’s percentage of rural fatalities above the national average the need to have a special program focusing coordinated efforts on rural safety has become apparent. 

The High Five project will begin December 1, 2022 and will conclude on September 30, 2023.