The trend of highway fatalities in Nebraska is back on an upward trajectory, with 27 deaths reported on the state’s roadways last month.
193 people have died on Nebraska roads in the first nine months of the year, 25 percent more than the same time last year, and equal to the figure from 2022.
State Highway Safety Administrator Bill Kovarik tells the Rural Radio Network that contributing to the trend is a significant increase in the number of fatalities among motorcyclists, which includes six in September. “Right now, to date we’ve had 31 motorcycle fatalities this year, which, that’s about 72% above where we were last year at this time,” said Kovarik. “You know, it’s still quite a bit above even our five year average, which had been trending down a little bit until this past year. Now, it’s really going up. I think we’re going to have the highest number of fatalities we’ve had in years.”
September’s fatality rate jumped higher despite recent efforts promoting safer driving by the Nebraska Department of Transportation, the State Patrol and local law enforcement.
Kovarik says roads and vehicles are being made safer, but drivers just aren’t delegating the time it takes to drive by paying attention and using seat belts to increase their chances of surviving a crash.
