Lane County Commissioners adopted a new transportation plan Tuesday, in hopes of reducing traffic deaths and serious crashes.
According to the plan, there were over 1,000 traffic deaths in Lane County between 2018 and 2023. More recent crash data is still preliminary and was not included in the report.
Rural Lane County has a much higher crash rate than Eugene and Springfield due to higher speeds, less traffic enforcement and other factors.
Becky Taylor, a senior transportation planner for Lane County, told commissioners that investments, some of which can be relatively low cost like rumble strips, can significantly reduce the severity of crashes or help prevent them. Other higher cost improvements, like roundabouts, removing, guardrails and improved signage can also make a big difference.
“This [transportation plan] is based on a safe system approach, which stresses the responsibility of road authorities to design a transportation system that anticipates, and accommodates human error,” Taylor said. “Everyone makes mistakes, but no one should die or suffer life changing injuries because of them."
Patrolling for drunk driving or speeding, can also lower traffic fatalities. Now that the commissioners have approved the plan, county staff can apply for state and federal funding to help pay for improvements.
The full transportation plan is below:
