DAYTON — Law enforcement across Montgomery County is concerned about the increase in fatal crashes over the last year and eight months. Several agencies in Montgomery County are coming together to step up enforcement in an effort to reduce the number of fatal crashes.
There’s several factors that could be to blame according to the Ohio State Highway Patrol and Dayton Police. Speed, alcohol, as well as not wearing a seatbelt are among the largest factors in fatal crashes.
“These nationwide incidents of racing fatalities and overall high speed driving is happening,” Sgt. Gordon Cairns, the Traffic Services Supervisor with Dayton Police, said. “We’re just seeing the speeds are going higher and higher. Where they may have been years ago speeding on those streets but they were going maybe 10, 15, 20 over. Now we’re seeing speeds as much as double the speed limit.”
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In the city of Dayton there were 29 fatal crashes in 2020 compared to 20 in each of 2018 and 2019. So far in 2021 there have been 14 fatal crashes within the city.
In 2020 there were 63 fatal crashes in Montgomery County. In 2021 there have been 42, which is the same number as all of 2019. There were 47 in 2018.
“That’s way way way too many fatalities,” Lt. Geoffrey Freeman, a member of the State Highway Patrol, said. “Too many lives lost, too many families that now have broken homes.”
State Highway Patrol, Dayton Police, Trotwood Police, and the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office are teaming up to cover areas that have been and continue to be problematic areas. Those agencies are also working with members of the community as well as neighborhoods to address some of the concerns that they have and recurring problems they’ve seen like speeding and street racing. Salem Avenue is one of the several places that will be targeted with enhanced enforcement.
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“Those complaints are backed up by data,” Sgt. Cairns said. “Where we’ve seen the speed, seen the crashes. Gettysburg Avenue is another one, Wayne Avenue. Several different locations and streets where we will focus based off of those statistics, neighborhood complaints.”
I-75 through downtown Dayton as well as US 35 in the city are areas where you will likely see more law enforcement going forward.
“People are going substantially faster than 55 miles per hour,” Lt. Freeman said referring to US 35. “We work with our airplane in that area. It’s routine to get people in the 90s, 100s, high 80s, that’s just a normal day.”
Seatbelt related fatal crashes have gone up in Montgomery County from 26 in 2018, 32 in 2019, and 36 in 2020. There has also been a rise in drug and OVI related fatal crashes in the county. Drug related fatal crashes have gone from 8 to 20 and 27 from 2018-2020. OVI related fatal crashes in Montgomery County have risen from 17 to 24 to 32 over the last three years. All of this as injury crashes in 2020 dropped significantly from the past two years. In Dayton the number of injury crashes were down in 2020 from 2019 but still higher than 2018.
Statistics are driving where law enforcement will increase its presence. The initiative will last through at least the end of the year. Lt. Freeman said that statistics will also determine if the program continues or when it ends.
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