You may have recently found a bright yellow mailer in your mailbox, asking you to take the Whatcom Crash Test.
That survey is the kickoff of public engagement for the Whatcom Council of Governments’ (WCOG) development of a regional safety action plan to reduce fatal car crashes in the region. Director of WCOG Hugh Conroy said the survey solicits feedback from residents on “proven countermeasures” to address human behavior in car crashes.
Car crash fatalities in Washington reached a 30-year high last year. More than 800 people died statewide, and 19 people in Whatcom County died in car crashes in 2023. This year, five people in the county have died in car crashes so far.
The survey tests respondents’ knowledge of crash fatalities and asks them to rank strategies to reduce impaired and distracted driving, speeding and crashes involving bikes and pedestrians. Options include adding more DUI or speeding checkpoints, decreasing the allowable blood alcohol concentration, increasing penalties for impaired driving and increasing education.
Conroy said the survey responses will be used to shape that regional safety action plan, which they expect to release by February 2025. The work is funded by $200,000 from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Safe Streets and Roads for All program and an additional $50,000 from local governments. The plan will allow local governments to apply for funding from the Safe Streets and Roads for All program to implement some of those strategies to reduce fatalities.
With this survey, Conroy said WCOG also aims to shape the conversation on the issue of crash fatalities. He highlighted regional nuances: For example, 36% of crash fatalities in Whatcom County involved a speeding driver, 5% higher than the statewide rate.
Conroy said WCOG hopes to be able to connect with “historically underserved and underrepresented communities” through this process.
“We’re really happy with the level of activity that the mailer has generated,” Conroy said. “[We’re] also getting a lot of voicemail and emails … that are widely variable. I feel like we’re getting a lot of different perspectives around the county.”
Whatcom County residents 16 and over can take the Whatcom Crash Test at this link.
Charlotte Alden is CDN’s general assignment/enterprise reporter; reach her at charlottealden@cascadiadaily.com; 360-922-3090 ext. 123.
